Recently, I’ve been fascinated by how we age, literally, what is aging and how do we age? Is it merely the number of years we have lived, or a multitude of other factors that impact us differently that we call getting older?
It has taken me in a deep dive into the science of aging, not the physiology of aging or the study of aging (gerontology), but the biochemistry of how we age.
In a fascinating new book, The Telomere Effect, Nobel Prize winner Dr. Elizabeth Blackburn and health psychologist Dr, Elissa Epel uncover the groundbreaking findings of what causes aging in human beings. The grey hairs, the wrinkled skin, the tired body, loss of muscle both physical and mental -- everything we attribute to aging, they say, is merely a reflection of what is happening to us at the cellular level, as seen in the telomeres.
They explain that "telomeres” (tee-lo-meres) are the “repeating segments of noncoding DNA that live at the ends of your chromosomes.” That is, if your DNAs are like the material that make up a shoelace, the Telomeres are like the aglets at the end of the shoelaces that keep it from fraying. Telomeres shorten with each cell division. The shorter the telomeres become, the more you “age” at the cellular level. Biochemical stressors in the body hasten the cell division. At some point, the telomeres become so shortened that it begins to impact the health of the DNA “shoelace.” At some point, these cells become “senile” (literally called “senescence”) and although they are still alive, they can no longer divide and rejuvenate. They stop dividing permanently. That’s how we become aged or ill, and lose functioning and the ability to heal.
But it doesn't necessarily have to be that way. You see examples of high functioning older people everywhere, those who are full of vigor and look and act more youthful than their chronological age. Perhaps this is your mother or your aunt, or world leaders whose average age is around 70.
Of course genetics have much to do with how we age, but research studies from a range of disciplines are now beginning to show that while our genes impact how we age, how we live -- how we maintain and care for our bodies, our habits of mind, and how we manage emotional well being -- impact how we age even more.
Blackburn and Epel write, "telomeres do not simply carry out the commands issued by your genetic code. Your telomeres, it turns out, are listening to you. They absorb the instructions you give them.” Put directly, “Your cells are listening to your thoughts.”
So how much negative thoughts, anxiety, and needless worry swirl through your mind on a daily basis? “Your cells are listening to your thoughts.” If you are stressed, your cells are stressed.
Finally, here is another enlightening research finding. Blackburn and Epel point out that “Aging is a dynamic process that can be accelerated or slowed, and in some cases even reversed.” (It turns out the body is empowered by a counteragent called “telomerase,” that can actually help slow -- and lengthen -- the dividing telomeres. Who knew!?)
So be kind to yourself. Take care of your body, your thoughts, your feelings. Your cells are listening to your thoughts and responding to your cues.
Thoughts for creating success in the second half of life.