The Best of Intentions

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jan16According to the Nielsen Report, each January, roughly one in three Americans resolve to better themselves in some way. A much smaller percentage of people actually make good on those resolutions. While about 75% of people stick to their goals for at least a week, less than half are still on target six months later. Willpower battles Temptation. It wins, and you lose. Gung-ho can turn to going, going gone in a heartbeat. Forget thinking mega anything.

GET WITH THE PLAN

There is a lot of help out there. You don’t have to be a statistic. Expand your vision. Set yourself up for success. Don’t plan on making drastic changes day one. Rather, make small changes day by day. “I’m going to lose 20 pounds in 3 weeks” isn’t a plan. Nor is “I’m going to join an expensive gym and go 6 times a week.” Acknowledge that old habits die hard and that there is no hard and fast track to feeling fabulous, and having the energy to take on the world. Set out a plan that incorporates exercise, nutrition, health and honesty. No one can sabotage you but yourself. Discover the incredible power of goal setting and actually making them score. You need to instill new habits, learn new skills and develop a new philosophy on life in order to make 2016 unlike any other year you had in the past.

BLUEPRINTS FOR HEALTHY LIVING

There probably isn’t much you haven’t Googled when it comes to your health. According to Simon Rogers, a data editor for Google News Lab, here are some that top the list: “Is bronchitis contagious?” “ Is pneumonia contagious?” “How much water should I drink?” “ How many calories should I eat?” “ What is lupus?” “What is gluten?”

Maybe it’s time you question what you’re questioning. Start making that frantically used search engine search for the right thing. Start with one thing, let’s say exercise. Find out exactly what it can do for your body, mind and overall health, and the ways not exercising can be harmful. It’s all out there.

Then move on to nutrition. You’ll learn exactly what you should and shouldn’t be eating for optimum health. No guessing. Just medical fact.  You’ll see how easy this can be and that it doesn’t involve deprivation or starvation. There are charts and data that spell it out.

So take notes.

TECH TO THE RESCUE

In addition to diet and exercise, some consumers are steadily employing technology to help them achieve their goals. Our phones have transformed us into the app addicted, but some of them are actually healthy. The growth in health and fitness app usage has skyrocketed.  Tracking personal fitness is at your fingertips. Literally. Mobihealthnews reported 46 million users accessed health apps, on average, 16 times per month, using them for close to an hour. The most commonly downloaded and used health apps are those pertaining to personal fitness and nutrition. In detail, according to a study published in The Journal of Internet Medical Research, 53% tracked physical activity, 48% tracked food consumption, 47% monitored weight loss and 34% gave exercise instructions. What these apps don’t do is help you follow the blueprint you laid out for overall health. You need to think of them as a sometime tool. Nothing will help you stick to the program but you.

GROWING TO BE THE BEST VERSION OF YOURSELF DOESN’T HAPPEN ON ITS OWN. EVEN IF YOU’RE LIVING A HEALTHY LIFESTYLE WITH GOOD NUTRITION AND REGULAR EXERCISE, YOU’RE NOT GOING TO GET THE MOST OUT OF IT IF YOUR HORMONES ARE OUT OF BALANCE. THAT’S WHY YOU SHOULD ADD DR. STEPHEN A. GOLDSTEIN, M.D., F.A.C.S. TO YOUR PROGRAM. AT DENVER HORMONE HEALTH HE’LL DISCUSS HOW BALANCING YOUR HORMONE DEFICIENCIES WHEN COMBINED WITH DIET AND EXERCISE CAN INCREASE YOUR STRENGTH, STAMINA, MOOD AND MOTIVATION TO FEEL YOUR ABSOLUTE BEST. YOU CAN PLAN ON IT.

THE MECHANICS OF AGING

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12-15-428OUT WITH THE OLD

THE ENDOCRINE THEORY

Simply put, the endocrine system is a network of glands that secrete chemicals called hormones to help your body function properly. The glands of the endocrine system are:

  • Hypothalamus
  • Pineal gland
  • Pituitary gland
  • Thyroid
  • Parathyroid
  • Thymus
  • Adrenal
  • Pancreas
  • Ovaries
  • Testes

These glands produce different types of hormones that evoke a specific response in other cells, tissues, and/or organs located throughout the body. The hormones reach these faraway targets using the blood stream. Like the nervous system, the endocrine system is one of your body’s main communicators. But instead of using nerves to transmit information, the endocrine system uses blood vessels to deliver hormones to cells.

Endocrine diseases are common and usually occur when glands produce an incorrect amount of hormones. Some of the processes and systems they help control are growth and development, homeostasis (the internal balance of body systems), metabolism, reproduction and response to stress and/or injury.

TELOMERES ARE EXTREMELY TELLING

Telomeres?

Inside the nucleus of a cell, our genes are arranged along twisted, double-stranded molecules of DNA called chromosomes. At the ends of the chromosomes are stretches of DNA called telomeres, which protect our genetic data, make it possible for cells to divide, and hold some secrets to how we age and get cancer.

Telomeres have been compared with the plastic tips on shoelaces, because they keep chromosome ends from fraying and sticking to each other, which would destroy or scramble an organism’s genetic information.

Yet, each time a cell divides, the telomeres get shorter. When they get too short, the cell can no longer divide; it becomes inactive or it dies. This shortening process is associated with aging, cancer, and a higher risk of death.

OUR HORMONES GET TIRED BEFORE WE DO

Our bodies produce almost 200 hormones daily that float around keeping the body functioning properly. They have the huge jobs to moderate and maintain what is going on inside us. The endocrine glands must release the correct amount of hormones. If they release too much or too little, it is known as a hormone imbalance. Endocrine diseases are common and happen when even one step in the process doesn’t work as it should.

The most dramatic thing about functional changes in the endocrine system is the decline in the concentration of reproductive hormones. In addition, age-related changes in other tissues affect their abilities to respond to hormonal stimulation. As a result, most tissues become less responsive to circulating hormones.

The hormone or endocrine theory of aging asserts that the most important factors in aging are the changes brought about in the body by the endocrine system. The complex endocrine system of our body controls the hormones that regulate many body processes. As we age, these systems become less efficient, leading to changes in our bodies such as menopause. The hormone theory of aging believes that these changes eventually cause the effects of aging.

There is a ton of work that falls on the levels of our hormones and their complex functions. Just the study of this is exhausting, especially with new research being revealed all the time.

KEEPING THE PARTS FROM FALLING APART

It’s sort of like a multi-car pile up when attention is placed only on one aspect of the crash. Rather, it’s an intricate chain reaction that needs to be examined car by car to see the extent of damages to each vehicle and their passengers. You’ve put a lot of wear and tear on your body through the years and now is the time to keep your foot to the pedal, and cautiously and carefully move forward. As people get older, they seem to spend more time reading and researching natural ways to get the body moving and perform as well as it once did. You’ll find them in pharmacy isles dumping “natural replacements” into their carts. Or reading all about holistic ways to turn back the clock. None of these options keep the hands of the clock running smoothly. Batteries die. You can overdose from over-the-counter supplements that are not taken at safe levels. The secret is to keep the parts running smoothly together, making your body hum with health and longevity.

WHILE THE MECHANICAL OF THIS MAY APPEAR OVERWHELMING, THERE IS SOMEONE WHO CAN EXPLAIN IT TO YOU IN TERMS YOU’LL BOTH UNDERSTAND AND WANT TO WORK ON. STEPHEN A. GOLDSTEIN, M.D. AT DENVER HORMONE HEALTH HAS DEDICATED HIMSELF TO LOOK AT THE SYSTEM AS A WHOLE, INDIVIDUAL BY INDIVIDUAL. HIS EXPERTISE IN THE PROCESS OF HORMONE HEALTH MAKES HIM THE PERFECT CHOICE TO BRING YOUR ISSUES AND PROBLEMS (OR PERCEIVED PROBLEMS) TO. FIRST, HE TAKES THE TIME TO LISTEN. TO ASK THE RIGHT QUESTIONS. THEN WITH A SIMPLE SERIES OF TESTS DETERMINES YOUR SPECIFIC HORMONE IMBALANCES AND VITAMIN DEFICIENCIE. ALL OF WHICH HE CAN HELP, ONE CASE AT A TIME. YOU WANT TO FEEL BETTER. HE WANTS YOU TO FEEL YOUR VERY BEST.

SO CALL NOW OR REQUEST MORE INFORMATION.

IRONING THE WRINKLES OUT OF AGING

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12-15-3OUT WITH THE OLD

Ageism is no laughing matter. Elderly. Oldster. Senile. Over-the-hill. Blue Hair. Biddy. Codger. Pops. Even Boomer is getting a bad age rap. It’s a rampant and historical form of prejudice, discrimination and bias.

Aging is an inside joke and the fodder of late night comedians. Consider the following:

You know you’re old if your walker has an airbag.

I knew the romance was gone when I drank champagne out of the old girl’s slipper and choked on a Dr. Scholl’s insert.

I’m done with wild oats. Now I’m into prunes and All Bran.

Funny, I don’t remember being absent minded.

Ageism is a cultural toxin that threatens our social future. And individual health. One study reported that older adults who held negative views about old age, faced life expectancies that were, on average seven and a half years shorter.

WHAT’S A NUMBER?

When is someone considered old? According to different studies the average seems to be age 68. However, most people under age 30 said the typical person becomes old before reaching their 60th birthday. One thing many people don’t know is that there is an important difference between chronological age (the date we were born) versus biological age (calculated on the basis of a person’s physical and mental condition).

If you want to know your true age, don’t look at the calendar. That number may be far from accurate in defining who you are. How many times do you ask someone how old they are only to freak out when you find out they look years younger?

EXPECT IT. DON’T ACCEPT IT.

Everyone ages. It’s life. But there is a better way to age. You don’t need to accept that illness, fatigue, memory function and even sexual dysfunction are inherent on the aging process. More and more there is a new focus on research to promote healthy aging rather than simply treating the diseases of old age.

There are simple, specific, important things we can all do to lower our biological age, even as we continue to tick off the chronological years. After all, every additional year on the calendar is a year you could be using to repair and rejuvenate your body, if you know what to do. The National Institute on Aging (NIA), part of the Federal Government’s National Institutes of Health (NIH), investigates ways to support healthy aging and prevent or delay the onset of age-related disease and decline. They have already gained important insights, and what we learn from ongoing and future studies may not only help to increase longevity, but may also promote what is known as “active life expectancy”—the time in late life free of disability.

SLOW DOWN, YOU’RE GOING TOO FAST

First, just top. If even for a minute. Our bodies all have internal clocks that stress and a host of other negative behaviors can cause to spin out of control. From early on, we’re on a fast track to hurting or even destroying all the things that can keep us young and healthy. We never sit and consider the effect of stress, bad eating habits, lack of sleep and more in the picture of our future health issues. Instead, when we’re young we are in total denial that one day we’ll be dumped in the pool of the damaging stereotypes mentioned above. It’s a race to cell burnout.

The hormones responsible for all of your youth-like qualities such as healthy skin tone, strong lean muscle, robust energy and insatiable sex drive, start declining more and more each year that goes by.  And if you’re not proactive, your youth enhancing hormone levels may drop so low that there is no turning back.

SUMMATION

WHATEVER YOUR AGE, THERE IS SOMETHING POSITIVE AND EFFECTIVE THAT CAN HELP SLOW THE AGING PROCESS AND GET YOU FEELING THE BEST YOU CAN. HELP YOU TO LIVE LIFE NOT ONLY BETTER, BUT LONGER. IT ALL STARTS WITH A CALL TO DENVER HORMONE HEALTH. STEPHEN A. GOLDSTEIN, M.D. IS AN AUTHORITY IN UNDERSTANDING THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN HORMONE IMBALANCE AND THE AGING PROCESS.  WITH SIMPLE TESTS HE CAN PINPOINT SPECIFIC IMBALANCES ALONG WITH VITAMIN DEFICIENCIES AND THEN TAILOR A SPECIFIC SOLUTION FOR YOUR ISSUES. YOUR GOAL? TO FEEL YOUR BEST. HIS GOAL? TO GET YOU THERE.

SO CALL NOW OR REQUEST MORE INFORMATION.