As a practicing physician of more than 20 years, I have long witnessed what happens to most people as they grow old. As a result, I used to dread aging. The prospect of facing the seemingly inevitable scenario of becoming feeble, forgetful, feeling sick, taking medications and making frequent doctors' visits was not something I looked forward to.
Worse, most of my colleagues in modern medicine had come to define this aging process as normal. But over the years, several things have changed my mind about the prospect.
First, I've learned that getting older and aging are not synonymous. I do want to get older; I just don't want to lose anything in the process. I'd like to keep my strength, flexibility, energy, vitality and mental acuity. Many of my patients have taught me that losing those is not the inevitable result of getting older.
More importantly, I have also learned that all of us have control over our aging process. We can control how quickly we age.
Yes! You heard me. You can do this by managing your immune system -- because it turns out that all of the unwanted changes of aging have been revealed to originate from an overactive immune system. The same defense system that protects us early in life from dangerous infections later turns on us and causes damage to our organs -- blood vessels, brain, heart, glands, joints, etc. The damage to our body caused by our own immune system accumulates over time as aging -- the loss of bodily function.
This means that once you understand how to manage your immune system, you do not have to age the way others do. You can avoid cancer, diabetes, stroke, Alzheimer's, and so many other diseases which medical science now realizes are caused or aggravated by an overactive immune system.
I came to this realization slowly in my career, learning from my own patients. The more I practiced, the more I encountered examples of what I'd consider to be ultra-successful aging; patients who were pushing 100 years old, and who had minds that were sharp and fit -- and bodies not far behind. What, I wondered, made them so successful at aging? Repeatedly, I found that each and every shining example of successful aging revealed markers of healthy immune function, without immune hyperactivity.
Two years of research have since helped me to learn how we can gain control over our immune system and prevent it from damaging our bodies and aging us prematurely. I've written what I've learned in UltraLongevity - The Seven-Step Program for a Younger, Healthier You (Little Brown September 2007).
I don't believe I would have realized this if I had continued working in emergency rooms and intensive care units. There, almost everybody has an overactive immune system. My understanding of the immune system came only after my own career shifted from the typical Western medicine of treating disease to the wellness environment of Canyon Ranch, where I've worked for the past 14 years.
Canyon Ranch medicine centers on prevention, health improvement, optimal health and successful aging. Of course, we also diagnose and manage disease, but our focus is wellness and helping clients feel the very best they possibly can.
The experience of working with people who take an active role in their health has been eye opening and has changed my expectations of what optimal health can be at any age.
It has also dispelled some of my preconceived notions and prevailing myths about health and aging. For example, like most people, I once believed that your genes had the most powerful effect on your health, and by looking at your parents you had a good idea of where you were headed, health-wise. But I've now seen so many examples of people avoiding "genetic destiny" by adopting healthier lifestyles than their parents that I no longer believe in genetic pre-determinism.
The past 14 years have given me a new insight into the power of both the human body and the human spirit, and when both are aligned I've seen nearly miraculous results that have made me question the conventional wisdom I was taught in medical school. Since then, I've learned from my patients that not everything I was taught is necessarily true.
What is true is that there are many scientifically proven ways to insure yourself a long and healthy life. I'll talk about these in future posts (or, you could read my new book, UltraLongevity, available September 17th).
Worse, most of my colleagues in modern medicine had come to define this aging process as normal. But over the years, several things have changed my mind about the prospect.
First, I've learned that getting older and aging are not synonymous. I do want to get older; I just don't want to lose anything in the process. I'd like to keep my strength, flexibility, energy, vitality and mental acuity. Many of my patients have taught me that losing those is not the inevitable result of getting older.
More importantly, I have also learned that all of us have control over our aging process. We can control how quickly we age.
Yes! You heard me. You can do this by managing your immune system -- because it turns out that all of the unwanted changes of aging have been revealed to originate from an overactive immune system. The same defense system that protects us early in life from dangerous infections later turns on us and causes damage to our organs -- blood vessels, brain, heart, glands, joints, etc. The damage to our body caused by our own immune system accumulates over time as aging -- the loss of bodily function.
This means that once you understand how to manage your immune system, you do not have to age the way others do. You can avoid cancer, diabetes, stroke, Alzheimer's, and so many other diseases which medical science now realizes are caused or aggravated by an overactive immune system.
I came to this realization slowly in my career, learning from my own patients. The more I practiced, the more I encountered examples of what I'd consider to be ultra-successful aging; patients who were pushing 100 years old, and who had minds that were sharp and fit -- and bodies not far behind. What, I wondered, made them so successful at aging? Repeatedly, I found that each and every shining example of successful aging revealed markers of healthy immune function, without immune hyperactivity.
Two years of research have since helped me to learn how we can gain control over our immune system and prevent it from damaging our bodies and aging us prematurely. I've written what I've learned in UltraLongevity - The Seven-Step Program for a Younger, Healthier You (Little Brown September 2007).
I don't believe I would have realized this if I had continued working in emergency rooms and intensive care units. There, almost everybody has an overactive immune system. My understanding of the immune system came only after my own career shifted from the typical Western medicine of treating disease to the wellness environment of Canyon Ranch, where I've worked for the past 14 years.
Canyon Ranch medicine centers on prevention, health improvement, optimal health and successful aging. Of course, we also diagnose and manage disease, but our focus is wellness and helping clients feel the very best they possibly can.
The experience of working with people who take an active role in their health has been eye opening and has changed my expectations of what optimal health can be at any age.
It has also dispelled some of my preconceived notions and prevailing myths about health and aging. For example, like most people, I once believed that your genes had the most powerful effect on your health, and by looking at your parents you had a good idea of where you were headed, health-wise. But I've now seen so many examples of people avoiding "genetic destiny" by adopting healthier lifestyles than their parents that I no longer believe in genetic pre-determinism.
The past 14 years have given me a new insight into the power of both the human body and the human spirit, and when both are aligned I've seen nearly miraculous results that have made me question the conventional wisdom I was taught in medical school. Since then, I've learned from my patients that not everything I was taught is necessarily true.
What is true is that there are many scientifically proven ways to insure yourself a long and healthy life. I'll talk about these in future posts (or, you could read my new book, UltraLongevity, available September 17th).
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