TELOMERE UPDATE
Welcome to April. I hope the weather in your area is giving thoughts to Spring. I abandoned spring cleaning a long time ago. If you go through your whole home doing deep cleaning then Summer comes along and doors and windows are open and in comes the dirt and dust all over again. When you fall clean at least the doors and windows are closed and the deep cleaning will last longer!
I have written about the importance of telomeres in the past. I just found information about how telomeres are able to predict cancer.
The research coming from Northwestern University in collaboration with Harvard University reports that a distinct pattern in the changing length of blood telomeres, the protective end caps on our DNA strands, can predict cancer many years before actual diagnosis.
Scientists have been trying to understand how blood cell telomeres, considered a marker of biological age, are affected in people who are developing cancer. But the results have been inconsistent: some studies find they are shorter, some longer, and some show no correlation at all.
Initially, scientists discovered telomeres aged much faster (indicated by a more rapid loss of length) in individuals who were developing but not yet diagnosed with cancer. Telomeres in persons who are developing cancer looked as much as 15 years chronologically older than those of people who were not developing the disease.
But then scientists found the accelerated aging process stopped three to four years before the cancer diagnosis. “Understanding this pattern of telomere growth may mean it can be a predictive biomarker for cancer.” said Dr. Lifang Hou, the lead study author and a professor of preventative medicine at Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine. “Because we saw a strong relationship in the pattern across a wide variety of cancers, with the right testing these procedures could be used to eventually diagnose many different of cancers.”
Telomeres shorten every time a cell divides. The older you are, the more times each cell in your body has divided and the shorter your telomeres. Because cancer cells divide and grow rapidly, scientists would expect the cell would get so short it would self-destruct. But that’s not what happens, scientists discovered. Somehow, cancer finds a way to stop that process.
Hou said, “if scientists can identify how cancer hijacks the cell, perhaps treatments could be developed to cause cancer cells to self-destruct without harming healthy cells.”
BIOIDENTICAL HRT IS NOW BECOMING ACCEPTED
As I have written in past articles the Women’s Initiative study was stopped in 2002. This study was stopped earlier then planned. It indicated erroneously that HRT caused heart attacks and breast cancer. New information is coming about that this study was wrong.
The original study used a synthetic combination of conjugated equine (yes, urine from female horses) estrogen with progestin (medroxyprogesterone acetate). This study wasn’t done using any other form of hormones and not the bioidentical compounded hormones. But a massive amount of people (men and women alike) developed a fear of ALL hormone replacements, which was unfortunate.
The real cause of the trial being terminated was for other reasons not related to any serious side effects or harm from HRT. A new study to be published in the journal Climacteric, concerns about HRT are discussed and the long-held beliefs are challenged. Some of the claims in the original report were unsubstantiated and conflicted with the scientific data and thus the study protocol had been cancelled.
Because of this study women have not only been deprived of symptom relief, but they have additionally been denied the other benefits of HRT. These would include protection against bone loss and fracture, as well as cognitive benefits.
Overlooked by mainstream medicine the plethora of research indicating that women may safely benefit from individualized doses of natural (meaning the bioidentical compounded formulas) estrogen and progesterone over their lifetime. Almost completely ignored are lifestyle changes (such as assuring optimal vitamin D serum status and cruciferous vegetable intake) that might reverse the kind of damage to cell regulatory genes inflicting by estrogenic compounds.
In this new study, not done by the Women’s Initiative group, the recommendations on HRT, serious questions are raised about the need for professionalism in the quality of protocol, data evaluation, and author approvals when submitting scientific reports. The new study also shows a need for a better understanding of hormone replacement therapy and its risks and benefits. It is now apparent that HRT is an effective preventative treatment if prescribed to healthy women who have been postmenopausal within 19 years, and the benefits outweigh the risks.
A study and presentation from the American College of Cardiology’s 66th Annual Scientific Session, showed that lower levels of atherosclerosis, or plaque buildup in the heart’s arteries, compared to women not using hormone therapy. This study says that hormone replacement may help improve heart health and overall survival in some women.
Dr. Yoav Arnson, MD, a postdoctoral scientist at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center, the study’s lead author said, “our results confirm and enhance previous work in terms of showing lower atherosclerosis. We have shown very clear survival benefits of using hormone replacement therapy. With proper screening and proper follow-up from a cardiovascular standpoint I believe it is beneficial to take hormone replacement therapy.”
Estrogen is thought to be protective of heart health through its beneficial effects on cholesterol and because it increases the flexibility of blood vessels and arteries, allowing them to accommodate blood flow. Studies show that pre-menopausal women, who produce high levels of estrogen, typically have the cardiovascular health of men 10 to 20 years younger than the women. But rates of heart disease increase dramatically after menopause, when estrogen levels plummet. By replacing the natural estrogen lost during menopause, hormone replacement therapy could be one way for women to regain the cardiovascular benefits of estrogen.
Another study presented at the European League Against Rheumatism Annual Congress (EULAR 2016), showed for the first time a beneficial effect of estrogens in experimental models of skin fibrosis that are representative of the disease process in system sclerosis (SSc). These findings may explain the increased incidence of SSc in women after menopause, the greater severity of SSc in men, and importantly open up the possibility of developing potential hormone therapies for this difficult-to-treat condition.
SSc (also known as scleroderma) is an autoimmune disease affecting multiple organs, which predominantly affects women (with female-to-male ratio of up to 9:1). Skin thickening is a defining feature of SSc, with excessive production of proteins such as collagen by fibroblasts resulting in skin thickening.
Dr. Jerome Avouac of the Paris Descartes University, Cochin Hospital, Paris, France said, “having confirmed that estrogens indeed play a role in protecting against skin fibrosis in experimental models representative of SSc, the next step is to begin investigating the potential role of hormone therapies as a treatment of SSc skin disease.”
I am reviewing an article about the controversial thinking of bioidentical hormone replacement therapy. I will write that information in another newsletter.
Please investigate the bioidentical hormones which are compounded especially for each women! These are easier to adjust and not the one size fits all variety! Hormonal supplementation are the body’s chemical carriers impacting our state of mind, appetite, metabolic processes, weight, physique, sex drive, immune system as well as behavior and much more!
Please check out my other articles on the bioidentical hormones on my website, www.hormoneshealthandfitness.com.
EXERCISE ACTUALLY IS THE CELLULAR ‘FOUNTAIN OF YOUTH’
Perhaps the fountain of youth actually exists! We know telomeres hold major clues and so does exercise, among many other factors.
A lot of information is being reported regarding high-intensity exercise. This form of exercise may help older adults reverse certain aspects of the “cellular” aging process according to a new study.
It’s no secret that regular exercise is healthy for young and old alike. But researchers said the new findings point to particular benefits from “high-intensity interval training” for older adults.
This type of workout that combines brief bursts of vigorous exercise with periods of moderate activity: A person might, for example, go all-out on a stationary bike for a few minutes, ease up for the next few, and then start again. For example, I like 45 seconds walking as fast as my body will go then 4.5 minutes slow walking. There are various methods of doing this type of exercise. It is much easier on joints, spinal problems and is very invigorating. The times can vary according to your abilities.
One study had one group doing high-intensity interval training three days a week. They pedaled on an exercise bike at their maximum speed for 4 minutes, before easing up for 3 minutes; they repeated that process four times. They worked out more moderately – walking on a treadmill – twice a week.
Another group performed aerobic exercise — using an exercise bike at a less-intense pace – five days a week, for 30 minutes. They also did some light strength-training four days a week.
After 12 weeks, all of the groups were showing positive changes – younger and older exercise alike, the researchers found.
People who performed moderate aerobic exercise boosted their fitness levels (the body’s ability to supply blood and oxygen to working muscles). And the improvement was greater for older adults, who generally started out with lower fitness levels than younger people.
The interval-training group showed only small gains in strength. But the training improved mitochondial function in the muscles, especially among older adults.
In a recent study, specifically, interval training gave a bigger boost to mitochondrial function in the muscle. Mitochondria are the “powerhouses” with body cells that break down nutrients to be used for energy. The training also revved up activity in more genes related to mitochondrial function and muscle growth.
The study findings suggest that interval training can turn back the clock in ways that moderate aerobic exercise and strength training do not, according to lead researchers Dr. K. Sreekumaran Nair. He is an endocrinologist at the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minnesota.
However, if you are sedentary, you should talk to your doctor before starting any kind of exercise program. Start your new program slowly.
LAST BUT NOT LEAST – FOOD
CINNAMON APPLE CHAI WAFFLES
Ingredients:
3 eggs, 1/4 cup coconut oil, 3/4 cup applesauce, 1 Tablespoon vanilla extract, 1/3 cup coconut flour, 4 scoops bone broth protein cinnamon apple protein powder, 1/8 teaspoon sea salt, 1/2 teaspoon each: cardamon, ginger and cinnamon, 1/4 teaspoon each nutmeg, cloves. Use organic, non GMO ingredients whenever possible.
Directions:
Whisk eggs, oil, applesauce and vanilla together. Stir in remaining ingredients and allow to sit for 5 minutes. Cook according to waffle iron instructions.
Cook Time:
20 minutes
