February 2025: The Ultimate Guide for Healthy Aging

Podcast

Listen to the Google LM Notebook podcast on this month's topic!

THE ULTIMATE GUIDE FOR HEALTHY AGING

The year 2025 is more than just a quarter century mark. It's also a perfect time to rethink your health goals.

•   What are you building towards?

•   What do you want your future to look like?

A LOOK INTO A HEALTHY LIFE

The most important start is to identify those conditions that underlay all areas of healthy aging. We want to know what conditions protect us from cancer, heart disease, strokes, dementia, diabetes, organ failure, and the loss of mobility.

In the early 1980's, researchers at Stanford University got together to study all the underlying signs and conditions that lead to healthy aging. They settled on five easy to remember conditions that have become the hallmark for healthy aging. We now have the numbers to go with what is called, 

The Metabolic Syndrome:

1.  BLOOD PRESSURE

   Over 120/80 mm/Hg

2.  BLOOD SUGAR

   Fasting glucose over100 mg/dIHG,

3.  WAIST SIZE

   Men: 40 inches, or more Women: 35 inches, or more

4.  HDL (good) CHOLESTEROL

   Men: 40 mg/dl, or less Women 50 mg/dl, or less

5.  TRIGLYCERIDES (fatty acids)

   Over 150 mg/dl

Failing three, or more, of these five conditions marks one as having the metabolic syndrome.

METABOLIC HEALTH

Let's face it, avoiding metabolic syndrome is not that difficult. Most of our adult population is currently pushing beyond the syndrome limits which equates to being only marginally metabolically healthy.

Taking each of the five conditions separately, lets explore solutions that offer better outcomes than medication.

•   Blood pressure: Our vascular system is adversely affected by chronic stress, excess sugar, ultra-processed food and smoking.

•   Blood Sugar: Keeping glucose below 100 requires not only limiting sugar and refined carbohydrates, but also adopting a regular exercise regimen like walking, jogging, swimming, stair climbing, dancing, or any sustained movement.

•   Protecting waist size within the limits suggested is a tall order. It means keeping sugar and too much saturated fat at reduced levels. Also, the body loves to workout including daily stomach exercises that firm up our waists.

•   Keeping HDL above prescribed limits means watching your intake of animal and dairy products (Vegans have an advantage here). Regular brisk walking and jogging will increase your HDL.

•   Keeping triglycerides below 150 requires cutting back on sugar, and saturated fat. Adding salmon and sardines help a lot. You want to keep moving with walking and dancing routines.

OUR METABOLIC HEALTH

Much of today's food production (stuff with a label on it), is for the consumers taste buds. Nutrition is secondary.

Americans prefer sweet, salty things, and they want it now!

Real whole food was the standard diet for our ancestors.

This changed around mid-20th century with the introduction of synthetic oils and synthetic sweeteners, plus a host of food coloring agents and preservatives.

The results are obvious. Our life expectancy rate has been dropping (even before Covid 19).

THE IDEAL MODERN DIET

Diets are confusing. Over 3,500 diet books, podcasts, and papers, are offered each year. The gold standard is still the Mediterranean diet. People on Mediterranean's North shore are the healthiest anywhere (both mentally and physically).

What the Mediterranean people have in common is that they eat real whole food, (preferably in a communal setting), consisting of locally grown produce, fruit, veggies, leafy greens, tree nuts, seeds, cheese and sea food.

Animal protein is scarce and usually consumed sparingly.

There are other proven diets such as the MIND diet, which is a mental health hybrid similar to the Mediterranean diet. We will also explore other new areas of dieting that may promote the potential for longer healthspans

Keep in mind that you can access all these diets online.

SOMETHING NEW

Mark Hyman MD, has created the Pegan diet, which is a hybrid of the Paleo diet, plus Vegan diets. This diet is nutrient dense, low in calories, sugar, starch, gluten, seed oils, and other unhealthy fats. There is a lot of deep color in his veggie offerings that provide high medicinal value, plus fiber. Certain types of preferred meat, fish, and legumes are included. A small amount of refined grains are OK.

The Pegan diet provides optimal health by balancing blood sugar as well as reducing inflammation.

About 75% of this diet is from plant foods. You can think of meat and seafood as a side dish rather than the main course. Here's a list of some of the food:

•   Non-starchy veggies make up the bulk of the diet. Yams and sweet potatoes are preferred over white potatoes. Don't forget to include a variety of leafy greens.

•   Fruits of all varieties are like medicine. Reduce your high sugar with these fruits:

  
  

  Bananas, blueberries, cantaloupe, honey dew, kiwi, oranges, and strawberries.

•   Animal protein is not the main course in this diet. Seafood should be from wild sources. Have some daily. Meat protein is used in very small amounts and should be grass fed, when possible.

" IF GOD MADE IT EAT IT. IF MAN MADE IT LEAVE IT !" 

Sorry, we don't have room for all diet information. We suggest you go online, or use YouTube for your dietary information.

Your New Health Order team,

Roger and Arlene