A study just determined that long-term physical activity has an anti-aging effect at the cellular level. The Journal of the American Heart Association just put into circulation the findings of a study  that was funded by the German Research Association & the University of Saarland.

The highlights of the study are:

• Long term physical activity has an anti-aging effect on the cells, meaning that exercise might prevent the aging of the cardiovascular system.

• Two groups of professional athletes were compared to a group who were non-athletes. The long term  professional athlete’s cells indicated that there were molecular differences that can lead to reduced aging.

The researchers were looking at the  length of the telomeres. The telomeres are the DNA that bookends the chromosomes and protects them from damage. When the telomeres are shortening it limits the number of cell divisions which can effect your biological clock.  Shortening of the telomeres from cell division leads to aging on a cellular level and could shorten life.

Ulrich Laufs, M.D., the study’s lead author and professor of clinical and experimental medicine in the Department of Internal Medicine at Saarland University in Homburg, Germany said,“The most significant finding of this study is that physical exercise of the professional athletes leads to activation of the important enzyme telomerase and stabilizes the telomere,” He also states, “This is direct evidence of an anti-aging effect of physical exercise. Physical exercise could prevent the aging of the cardiovascular system, reflecting this molecular principle.”

In other words, the long and hard lifetime training of the professional athletes  (up to 50 miles of running per week ) keeps the telomere longer and prevents them from dying off. I have always felt that exercise prolongs life but it’s so hard to prove. This study provides some evidence that long hard training can prolong life but you would have to run 50 miles per week for a life time to get the cellular effect. Is that realistic?

I would like to ask my readers this: If you were guaranteed to live longer, but you had to run 50 miles per week, would you do it?

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Best- Mike Cola

Demystifying Health

By age 40 most men’s natural hormone levels start to decrease. This can lead to a decrease in energy, poor outlook on life, increased body fat,decreased muscle mass, sleep problems and reduced libido.

Well, it’s not that bad getting older but can Human Growth Hormone (HGH) help restore your hormone levels and slow down aging? Do the benefits outweigh the risks? These are great questions. My personal training clients have been hearing a lot about HGH in the news and want to know does it work and is it safe.

First of all, there is only one legally way of taking HGH and that is with an anti-aging physician. Blood work is always taken and the proper dose will be administered based on your individual results. The amounts given are usually far less then what athletes are illegally taking to enhance physical performance. When it comes to hormones more is not better. Many of the risks are associated with high doses of these hormones.

What are the benefits of HGH?

Physicians are reporting that many patients are experiencing significant benefits and improvements in: energy, mood, outlook on life, sleep, fat loss, muscle mass, sex drive, bone density, recovery from exercise, less wrinkling, memory and cognitive thinking, thickening of skin and aerobic capacity.

The cost of HGH can be expensive. One international unit costs about $18. If you are taking one unit a day that is about $540 a month.  So when you evaluating the benefits you have to weigh the costs.

What are the risks of HGH?

The goal of taking HGH is to raise your level back up to what they were when you were 30 years old.  Anti-aging physicians feel that the risks are limited due to the fact that the body naturally produces the hormone and you are just bringing the levels back up to what they naturally were years ago. But there are some real debatable risks associated with taking HGH.

The most concerning risk is if you have an active cancer. HGH is a growth hormone and it can stimulate the growth of an existing cancer. HGH will never be prescribed to anyone with an active cancer. It is debatable whether HGH can increase your risk of developing cancer. Some studies show an increased risk while others do not.  The second concern is Carpal Tunnel Syndrome (CTS). Patients have reported mild CTS while taking HGH. CTS is a condition were the median nerve in the wrist is compressed and there is numbness and tingling in the hand.  The joint stiffness might be caused by fluid retention from taking too high a dose of HGH. A final risk is elevated blood sugar, which is more common with sedentary patients who eat a high sugar diet. You need to exercise and eat a low sugar diet while on HGH.

What’s the Bottom Line?

The bottom line is that it is a personal decision. Talk about it with your primary physician and see what he or she thinks. More information and studies come out every year so take your time and make the right decision for yourself.

Here are some links with some more information about HGH.

Link from the Mayo Clinic

www.mayoclinic.com/health/growth-hormone/HA00030

Anti-aging physician who I herd is respectable. David Lenonardi, M.D., his web site is

www.go2lehi.com

Link from the Wikipedia encyclopedia

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Growth_hormone

Some of the research I did for this article came from Frank Zane’s High Def handbook. Frank Zane was a 3 time Mr. Olympia. Check out his site.

www.frankzane.com

If you enjoyed this post, then make sure you subscribe to my e-mail list.

Best – Mike Cola

Demystifying Fitness, Health & Nutrition