10 Alarming Habits That Are Making You Age Faster - Nutrisense Journal (2024)
Have you ever wondered why some people look much older than their actual age, while others seem to stay looking younger for longer? You may be able to find the answer in your lifestyle choices!
While lifestyle habits and dietary choices aren’t the only things that can speed up aging, they’re certainly some of the most critical factors.And although some aspects of aging are inevitable, there are a few unconscious habits can accelerate the process.
You can’t always reverse aging itself (it’s a natural part of life!), but correcting these habits can help slow any premature aging. Knowing what they are is the first step!
Read on to learn more about premature aging and what you can do to prevent it.
1) A Constant Diet of Unhealthy Foods
It’s no secret that a healthy diet is the first step towards overall wellness. But, the dietary choices that you make throughout your life may also affect how quickly you age. Eating primarily processed foods and trying too many crash diets may speed up the rate at which your cells age.
The first thing to remember is that everyone’s dietary needs are unique. Your needs will depend on your genetics, age, medical conditions, and level of physical activity, among other things. So, you will need to understand what your body needs to create a diet plan that’s best for you.
Ensure that you balance your meals with protein, fiber, healthy fats, and complex carbohydrates.
Stick to an eating schedule. Eating meals at a similar time every day can help you make better decisions regarding your food choices and the quantity of food you consume.
2) Consuming Too Much Alcohol
It’s no secret that alcohol consumption can affect your health, but did you know that it can also lead to premature aging? There’s a lot of talk about the health benefits (or lack thereof) of alcohol.
There are potential benefits of certain types of alcohol, like red wine with its antioxidant content. But alcohol consumption can also affect blood sugar and lead to other issues like unhealthy weight gain.
There are two main things to consider when it comes to alcohol and aging: how alcohol affects your overall health and how it impacts the aging process. Research shows links between alcohol and issues like liver disease, cancer, heart disease, and stroke.
Remember that everyone’s body will react differently to alcohol, so drinking responsibly and listening to your body as you do, is essential.
Drinking Alcohol and Aging Healthily:
The National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism (NIAAA) defines binge drinking as a pattern of drinking over four (for women) or five (for men) alcoholic beverages in two hours. If you think your habits fit this definition, speak to your doctor about creating a plan to reduce the amount you consume.
It’s alright to enjoy the occasional drink, but consider how much you drink when you’re in social settings and try to avoid reaching for alcohol when you’re alone. It can help you steer clear of forming any unhealthy habits.
3) Overwhelming Stress or Anxiety
We all experience stress on occasion, but did you know that too much of it too often can lead to premature aging? When you’re stressed, your body releases cortisol, a hormone that has harmful effects on the skin.
Stress also creates free radicals in the body, damaging cells and leading to early signs of aging. Fortunately, there are ways to combat the effects of stress and keep yourself looking young and vibrant.
How to Handle Stress and Anxiety:
Make time for yourself every day to practice self-care. Self-care looks different for everyone and can include anything from meditation and reading to a walk outside, a laidback spa day, or light movement.
Set boundaries at work and with friends. Don’t let other people’s expectations dictate every aspect of your life.
Try breathing exercises like the 4-7-8 breathing technique to calm you down when you feel overwhelmed.
4) Insufficient Sleep
Do you often find yourself feeling exhausted all the time? If so, you’re not alone. It’s usually due to a lack of sleep or a lack of restful sleep. It’s a common problem, especially among those who are aging. Getting the right amount of sleep is essential for overall wellbeing, and it’s crucial as you get older.
Tips for Good Sleep Habits:
Try to get an average of seven to nine hours of sleep every night. You may need more sleep than others, and that’s okay! Listen to your body’s needs. Remember, though, oversleeping can also make you feel exhausted.
Set a regular sleeping schedule. It will help your body set a good rhythm.
5) A Smoking Habit
Did you know that smoking can dramatically affect the way you age? Smoking is a well-known risk factor for developing many diseases, such as cancer and heart disease. It can also affect how fast you age.
Smoking can cause wrinkles, age spots, and other signs of aging. It can also make you more likely to develop conditions like cataracts and macular degeneration.
Tips to Ditch Your Smoking Habit:
Try smoking cessation products, like nicotine gum or patches.
Consider cutting down gradually by changing some of your habits. For example, if you usually have a cigarette after every meal, try cutting it down to after two meals, then one, and so on.
It can be challenging to quit smoking on your own because your brain is addicted to nicotine. If you’re having a hard time, talk to your doctor. They can create a plan by recommending support groups, therapists, and medication to help you kick the habit.
6) Too Much Time in the Sun
Do you love spending time in the sun? While it’s enjoyable, too much sun can have some pretty harmful effects on your skin. Recent studies have shown that too much time spent in the sun can speed up aging.
It’s because the sun’s ultraviolet (UV) radiation can damage your skin, leading to wrinkles, age spots, and even skin cancer. While it is vital to get some vitamin D from the sun, it is crucial to be aware of the dangers of overexposure and take precautions to protect yourself.
Tips to Reduce UV Ray Exposure:
If you know you will be in the sun, remember to apply sunscreen.
Avoid tanning beds. They use artificial UV rays to make you tan and affect your skin as you age.
7) A Lack of Activity or Exercise
Believe it or not, lack of activity and exercise can lead to premature aging. It’s essential to be proactive about your health and ensure that you regularly get enough physical activity.
A lack of any activity or exercise can significantly impact aging. It can also lead to obesity, heart disease, stroke, diabetes, and more. As people age, they may experience decreased muscle mass and strength.
This decrease happens because the body produces less testosterone, the hormone responsible for developing and maintaining muscle mass. Although you can’t reverse this natural process, there are ways to slow it down or minimize its effects. One way to do this is through regular exercise.
Tips to Stay Active and Fit as You Age:
Find something that you love to keep you active. If you aren’t having fun, the exercise you chose may not be the right one for you.
Do something small to stay active every day, like stretching before bed or going for a midday walk.
Stay active as you age, even if it’s just around the house. Things like daily chores and remembering to get up and stretch or walk around every 30 minutes can benefit your overall wellbeing and keep you feeling and looking younger.
8) Sitting Too Much
Speaking of staying active, do you sit in one spot for too long? Even if you have a desk job or need to be at your computer for hours at a stretch, sitting for prolonged periods is not a good idea.
If you want to feel young, stay healthy, and reduce the risk of accelerated aging, it’s essential to break up the amount of time you spend sitting with regular breaks throughout the day. Luckily, there are plenty of ways to do this, so you can get up and move without interrupting your work or daily routine.
Tips to Avoid Sitting Too Much:
As we mentioned above, make sure that you get up and walk around (even if it’s just around the house) every 30 minutes, or at least every two hours.
Try working standing up occasionally. If you work from home, consider investing in a standing desk next time you buy office furniture.
Wear a smartwatch. It will remind you to stand after recognizing that you have been sitting still for too long.
9) Not Drinking Enough Water
You need it to survive and thrive, but do you drink enough of it? It’s no secret that drinking enough water is essential for good health, but many of us don’t drink as much water as we should.
You may not immediately recognize the effects of dehydration on your body, especially as you age. But, it’s crucial to stay hydrated to stay healthy!
Tips to Stay Hydrated:
Keep track of how much water you are drinking every day. Use a large water bottle, fill it every morning, and finish it before you go to bed.
Drink a full glass of water when you wake up and an hour or two before you go to sleep.
The National Academy of Medicine suggests drinking around 72-104 ounces of water every day. Of course, the amount you need can vary depending on numerous factors including your height, weight, activity level, the amount you sweat and the climate around you.
10) High Glucose Levels
What’s the scoop on glucose and aging? High blood sugar levels aren’t just a problem for people with diabetes. High blood sugar levels can also cause many age-related health problems. There are links between aging and elevated levels of glucose and insulin.
Believe it or not, reducing your glucose intake may be one of the solutions! Your body makes glucose from carbohydrate foods, and the quick-digesting carbohydrates from refined and processed foods, in particular, can contribute to higher levels of glucose. So, eating more whole foods is a good way to begin balancing your glucose intake.
Tips for Good Glucose Management:
Understand your body’s needs based on genes, health conditions, and age. Make sure you get your yearly check-ins at the doctor and discuss your dietary needs with a doctor or dietitian.
Use tools like continuous glucose monitors (CGMs) to monitor and collect your body’s data. Your body will tell you what it needs; you just have to understand what it tells you… and a CGM can help you do that!
Engage with Your Blood Glucose Levels with Nutrisense
Your blood sugar levels can significantly impact how your body feels and functions. That’s why stable blood glucose levels can be an important factor in supporting overall wellbeing.
With Nutrisense, you’ll be able to track your blood glucose levels over time using a CGM, so you can make lifestyle choices that support healthy living.
When you join the Nutrisense CGM program, our team of credentialed dietitians and nutritionists are available for additional support and guidance to help you reach your goals.
Ready to take the first step? Start with our quiz to see how Nutrisense can support your health.
Addictions like smoking, excessive alcohol consumption, and poor diet choices all contribute to the addition of the stress and inflammation in our body. This also makes our body more acidic and less alkaline which also accelerates the aging process.
Exposure to light is a top cause of premature aging: Sun exposure causes many skin problems. Ultraviolet (UV) light and exposure to sunlight age your skin more quickly than it would age naturally. The result is called photoaging, and it's responsible for 90% of visible changes to your skin.
The skin on your neck tends to be one of the first body parts to show signs of aging, because it is thinner and more delicate than the skin on the rest of your body. Similar to the face, your neck and chest can also develop fine lines and wrinkles.
Their work has revealed exciting new clues about the biology of aging. But solid evidence still shows that the best way to boost the chance of living a long and active life is to follow the advice you likely heard from your parents: eat well, exercise regularly, get plenty of sleep, and stay away from bad habits.
Loss of muscle tone and thinning skin gives the face a flabby or drooping appearance. In some people, sagging jowls may create the look of a double chin. Your skin also dries out and the underlying layer of fat shrinks so that your face no longer has a plump, smooth surface.
Exercise is one of the best ways to delay aging. And with good reason: too much time sitting (sedentary behavior) is associated with an increased risk of heart disease, diabetes, cancer, and an early death. Aerobic activity is any activity that causes you to breathe harder than normal and your heart to beat faster.
Most of Europe have similar views of old age to the World Health Organisation, believing old age starts at 65 years of age. In America, one researcher found that you are considered old at 70 to 71 years of age for men and 73 to 73 for women.
As far as the female or male aging timeline, the biggest changes typically occur when people are in their 40s and 50s. However, it's not unlikely to notice changes in your mid to late-30s, as well. Some of the first signs of aging are droopy skin, smile lines, and wrinkles.
Impact of Aging on Circadian Oscillators. In humans and other mammals, the suprachiasmatic nucleus (SCN) in the hypothalamus houses the 'master' circadian clock responsible for synchronizing many tissue specific circadian oscillators in a hierarchical manner (Albrecht, 2012).
For example, the team suggests that the biological aging process isn't steady and appears to accelerate periodically — with the greatest bursts coming, on average, around ages 34, 60, and 78.
After age 30, people tend to lose lean tissue. Your muscles, liver, kidney, and other organs may lose some of their cells. This process of muscle loss is called atrophy. Bones may lose some of their minerals and become less dense (a condition called osteopenia in the early stages and osteoporosis in the later stages).
Findings from a few studies suggest that eating plenty of fresh fruits and vegetables may help prevent damage that leads to premature skin aging. Findings from research studies also suggest that a diet containing lots of sugar or other refined carbohydrates can accelerate aging. Drink less alcohol.
This low mortality is mainly attributable to a low rate of obesity, low consumption of red meat, and high consumption of fish and plant foods such as soybeans and tea. In Japan, the obesity rate is low (4.8% for men and 3.7% for women).
Is it possible to reverse aging? You cannot wholly reverse aging—it's a normal part of life. However, you may be able to slow it down and help prevent age-related diseases by adopting a healthy lifestyle.
Typical youthful features: high cheekbones, full cheeks, and a defined jawline. Generally as we age, facial bone changes, soft tissues (like muscles) fall due to gravity, and skin sags and droops downward.
A skincare routine can bring a big impact on the skin and make a woman look younger naturally. Facial massage improves blood circulation and improves skin elasticity. Daily massage is a part of the skincare routine. Including Vitamin C-rich fruits, vegetables and supplements improve collagen production.
The American Geriatric Society and the World Health Organization define the oldest-old as individuals aged over 80 years, while the British Geriatrics Society uses 85 years as a threshold. In recent publications, the cut off was fixed at 85 or 90 years and over [1,2,3].
New research suggests humans have not yet reached their maximum lifespan. A new paper argues that the record for longest living human may be challenged, repeatedly, over the next few decades.
Older adults need about the same amount of sleep as all adults—7 to 9 hours each night. But, older people tend to go to sleep earlier and get up earlier than they did when they were younger. There are many reasons why older people may not get enough sleep at night.
Yes, after measuring the skin's “power quotient” in women of different ages, SK-II scientists have concluded that the age of 35.09—or approximately 33 days past your 35th birthday—is the precise tipping point: You'll start to look older from the moment you wake up that morning. And that's not all!
Inadequate Vitamin D in the skin causes it to become thin, saggy, wrinkled, and weak. Your skin is your largest organ, so making sure it's strong and healthy is incredibly important in preventing premature aging. Dr.
With age, bones tend to shrink in size and density, weakening them and making them more susceptible to fracture. You might even become a bit shorter. Muscles generally lose strength, endurance and flexibility — factors that can affect your coordination, stability and balance.
As we age our brains shrink in volume, particularly in the frontal cortex. As our vasculature ages and our blood pressure rises the possibility of stroke and ischaemia increases and our white matter develops lesions. Memory decline also occurs with ageing and brain activation becomes more bilateral for memory tasks.
Males lose collagen earlier and more consistently throughout life. Females tend to keep more until menopause, when they lose it at a dramatic rate. So while males slowly, gradually look older, females experience a more sudden, marked change in how old they look.
Overall, the findings show that protein substances in blood can serve as a useful measure of a person's chronological and biological age and—together with Wyss-Coray's earlier studies—that substances in blood may play an active role in the aging process.
Experts say exposure to stress can cause inflammation and damage to DNA in cells, which in turn can accelerate aging. A lower biological age is linked with a lower risk of developing cardiovascular disease, immune dysfunction, metabolic disorders, and other age-related conditions.
Researchers have found that balance begins to decline in midlife, starting at about age 50. In one recent study, adults in their 30s and 40s could stand on one foot for a minute or more. At age 50, the time decreased to 45 seconds. At 70, study participants managed 28 seconds.
No matter what your age, you can improve your fitness.
If it's been a long time since you've exercised and you're feeling less than fit, you might think that it's too late to make a change. But you're wrong. You can improve your fitness at any age.
The factors associated with successful aging according to the ecological system model included age, sex, educational level, economic status, heavy drinking, subjective health status, and health screening in the individual system.
Some theories suggest cells have a predetermined lifespan, while others claim it's caused by error and damage. Other theories say that aging is due to genetic, evolution, or biochemical reactions. Aging is normal, but following a healthy lifestyle may help you live longer.
The nine hallmarks of aging are genomic instability, telomere attrition, epigenetic alterations, loss of proteostasis, deregulated nutrient sensing, mitochondrial dysfunction, cellular senescence, stem cell exhaustion, and altered intercellular communication.
Researchers have found that environmental and lifestyle factors heavily influence biological age, including social connectedness, sleeping habits, water consumption, exercise, and diet.
Our results illustrated that many of the determinants of physical, mental/cognitive, and social well-being are interrelated. For example, in the physical domain both determinants, physical activity and diet can affect the mental/cognitive determinant of attitude/outlook.
The seven pillars are inflammation, stem cell regeneration, macromolecular damage, stress, proteostasis, metabolism and epigenetics 1 . The relationships between the pillars are shown by the interconnected network.
We call them "The Four Pillars of Successful Aging." They are; 1) Brain Fitness, 2) Physical Fitness, 3) Nutrition/Dining Experience and 4) Social/Spiritual Engagement. When you build these Four Pillars into your everyday life, you will be helping to build a strong foundation for health and longevity.
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Introduction: My name is Amb. Frankie Simonis, I am a hilarious, enchanting, energetic, cooperative, innocent, cute, joyous person who loves writing and wants to share my knowledge and understanding with you.
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