What are TELOMERES and why are they so important?
Telomeres are the protective caps on the ends of our threadlike chromosomes (similar to the plastic tips on shoelaces) that keep our genetic material safe from damage.
Elizabeth H. Blackburn, PHD, won the world’s attention – and a 2009 Nobel Prize for her research on this tiny bit of cellular machinery that turns out to be a hugely important clue to human health.
Every time a cell divides, as our immune and skin cells regularly do, the telomeres tend to get a little shorter – which makes them an excellent indicator of cellular aging. When telomeres get too short, cells stop working properly. But that’s not the whole puzzle: Blackburn and one of her colleagues discovered an enzyme that replenishes and repairs frayed telomeres, helping us stay healthier as we get older.
This enzyme called “telomerase” slows the rate at which telemeres degrade, and research indicates that healthy people with longer telomeres have less risk of developing the common illnesses of aging – like heart disease, diabetes, and cancer which are three big killers today.
What can we do to help ourselves?
Lifestyle factors like a diet high in omega-3 fatty acids and enough exercise to make you break a sweat helps to boost “telomerase” naturally. Exercise mitigates the effects of stress – and STRESS, we know, shortens telomeres. So………..
The long & the short of it is living a long life means protecting the tips of your chromosomes. Try to stay as stress free as possible, eat healthy, exercise and B Well.
Click on link below to FIND OUT MORE about how you can help reverse the aging process, reduce pain, improve energy and brain function with Brad King, host of “Transforming Health.”
Info. taken from “The Youth Enzyme,” an article by Thea Singer for Oprah magazine.
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