Ninety percent of all chronic diseases, such as cardiovascular disease, diabetes, dementia, and high blood pressure, are directly related to our environment including what we eat, chemicals we are exposed to, pollution, stress, and exercise. Most Covid 19 patient deaths are among individuals with chronic disease.
New research from the CDC states that forty percent of children today have a chronic disease such as heart disease, diabetes, obesity, high cholesterol, and high blood pressure. Our children's overall health is at risk of a shorter life span. What we keep learning from this virus is that we need to start taking care of our overall health.
Our immune system is directly affected by our environment. Therefore, we need to decrease our exposure to environmental toxins, eat healthy organic foods, exercise, and reduce our stress. Our immune system protects us from disease and infections. So what can we do to protect our immune system on a daily basis? What is the best diet for overall health?
Diet
Better health starts with a good diet; eating at least 5 to 12 organic veggies a day. The best diet for optimal health is a low-fat and low-carbohydrate diet such as the Mediterranean diet. Researchers from Norway found that a 20-year-old man in the U.S. could extend his life up to 13 years, and a 20-year old woman by 11 years by eating a diet of plant-based foods (legumes), whole grains, and nuts, and less red and processed meat. Fish is also included on the healthful list, whereas sugar-sweetened beverages (sodas) and foods based on refined [white] grains, such as white bread, are among those to be avoided. A 60-year-old could still increase life expectancy by 8 years for women and 9 years for men, and even an 80-year-old female could gain more than three years with healthier food choices. This diet uses organic extra virgin olive oil, cold water seafood, and many veggies. Please note that a lot of the olive oils in the grocery stores may say extra virgin olive oil but they are not. Like veggies, I recommend organic olive oils. Olive oil should be used within 6 months of manufacturing since it can go rancid easily. Also, never use olive oil on high heat. It should only be used at room temperature or for sautéing. Good oils to use for high heat cooking include avocado or coconut oil. There are a lot of good recipes online.
Foods that have been shown to increase longevity are high in fisetin and flavonoids. These foods include apples, grapes, strawberries, kale, cucumber, onion, persimmon, mangos, tomatoes, nuts, and wine. Fisetin has been shown to lower inflammation, lower blood sugar, have antitumor effects, and prevent neurological disorders such as Alzheimer’s, Parkinson’s, ALS, Huntington's disease, strokes, and traumatic brain injury. Fisetin works by inhibiting cellular pathways that affect aging so it has an antiaging effect.
Antioxidants
A good multiple vitamin that is high in antioxidants that protects our immune system, such as Vit A, E, C, D, and Selenium, is recommended. Studies have shown that people who take good multiple vitamins were less likely to get severe effects of Covid 19. Antioxidants protect our immune system from free radicals which are precursors to cancer. My Optimal Health multiple that I formulated 22 years ago contains all the recommended antioxidants.
Exercise
Exercise is very important for our immune system and increases longevity. Studies show that the leaner your muscle mass the longer your life expectancy. This is why exercise is very important. We start losing our muscle mass at thirty years old. Therefore, starting some type of weightlifting program three times a week for 15 to 20 mins will help you maintain and gain muscle mass. The more visceral adipose fat one has the lower your life span. Obesity has been associated with a shorter life span and an increased risk for chronic disease and Covid. Studies show that one hour of exercise five times a week is recommended to prevent chronic disease. Here is a link to five exercises that will increase lean muscle mass and make you look younger. A new study on dementia and Alzheimer’s shows that older adults who are physically active have a lower risk for memory loss.
Inflammation
Inflammation is the other marker that predicts longevity. Inflammation causes physical swelling, redness, increase mucous, and pain. Recommended lab tests to check for inflammation include CRP, homocysteine, and SED rate. Inflammation can be caused by poor diet and lifestyle, environmental toxins, mental and emotional health, and genetics. Ongoing inflammation can cause cancer, heart disease, arthritis, etc. Inflammation is a sign that you need to deal with your health issues. Most diseases cause inflammation. Reducing inflammation will increase longevity.
Genetics
Our genes make us susceptible to diseases. However, just because your parents had colon cancer or high cholesterol does not mean you're going to get these diseases. There is a lot you can do to lower your susceptibility to diseases that run in your family. For instance, colon cancer runs in my family and increases my risk. My family ate a lot of meat and potatoes growing up in Chicago. At my last colonoscopy, I had no polyps because I changed my diet to pescatarian (fish & plant-based) 40 years ago. Studies show that we can change our genetic predisposition through diet and lifestyle. Many patients tell me that they have high cholesterol because it is genetic and their parents have high cholesterol. I tell these patients they have high cholesterol because they eat like the rest of their family. When these patients change their diet and exercise their cholesterol goes down. So, we have more control over our genetic predisposition than we think.
Lifestyle
Simple lifestyle changes can make such a powerful difference. It's because they affect so many different parts of our underlying biological mechanisms that affect our underlying health -- chronic inflammation, oxidative stress, changes in immune function, with the microbiome and telomeres and gene expression, angiogenesis, etc. There are literally hundreds of thousands of protective substances in fruits and vegetables such as phytochemicals, bioflavonoids, carotenoids, retinols, isoflavones, genistein, and lycopene that have anti-cancer, anti-heart disease, and anti-aging properties. You can eat a very healthy plant-based diet for less than it costs to eat meat, especially now with inflation and the price of meat is soaring. Natural plant-based foods can also be delicious and nutritious. I am not recommending a lot of these meatless burgers which are not made from natural sources. Many of these meatless products are processed foods, contain chemicals that are not natural.
