Instinctively, we all love the idea of being able to rejuvenate our bodies. Imagine what it would be like to dial back the clock and live as a twenty-something again (but this time with money). It would be amazing, right?
But anti-aging is just a pipe dream. It’s not physically possible, we’re told. So we should give up on the idea altogether.
But is that actually true? Or is our biology more flexible than that?
It turns out that there’s mounting evidence that aging is plastic and something that we can control, both naturally and through interventions.
Yes – Rejuvenation Is Possible
For most people, the idea of rejuvenating the body seems far-fetched, but it’s been done in the lab. For instance, researchers have rejuvenated the optic nerves and livers of mice, returning them to an earlier state. Their work indicates that old tissues can return to normal using gene instructions called the Yamanaka factors.
The research is mind-blowing, but it also has implications for regular people like you. It means that there are methods that you can use to transform your body and actually make it look and feel younger. So what tools are available?
Diet
Diet is probably the most potent intervention for slowing the aging process and making tissues behave more youthfully.
It turns out that some foods contain compounds that signal your body to go into repair mode. When this happens, cells focus less on multiplying and more on housekeeping. Eventually, they can recover their youthful properties.
This effect is more evident in the blood vessels, but it can also affect the kidneys and even the skin, reducing signs of wrinkles.
Cosmetics
As we get older, it can affect the way we look through no fault of our own. Pregnancy, in particular, can change the shape of your body.
Fortunately, techniques like breast augmentation and “mommy makeovers” can reverse this process, making your body look like it did before you got pregnant or started breastfeeding.
Sirtuin Activators
Every cell in your body contains a set of genes called sirtuins. The purpose of these is to activate specific maintenance pathways in your body to ensure that your cells can continue reading instructions from the DNA.
Unfortunately, as we age, we lose compounds in our bodies that activate these genes. And so, our capacity to repair diminishes over time. That’s one of the reasons why aging appears to speed up as we get older. The difference between a 20-year-old and a 30-year-old isn’t much. But the change between 60 and 70 can be quite substantial.
Today, though, you can get compounds like NMN and NR that activate sirtuins directly, keeping them buzzing along at a high right over time. The hope is that these molecules will be able to keep people younger for longer and avoid disease.
Exercise is another intervention that you might want to try for rejuvenation. But it is most effective when you combine it with the other methods discussed here. Try them for yourself and see if it makes a difference in your life.
