Winter has finally arrived in Boise and the surrounding mountains. Karen and I actually enjoyed shoveling the 6 inches of new snow and the dogs are energized by the white fluff. It was minus 14 in McCall and the Lake is frozen solid except for the outlet at the damn. Never crossed my mind that open water might have health benefits. In a recent Time issue, titled “How to Live Longer Better” I found a plethora of interesting data. Many have embraced swimming in frigid water for fun and health. Swimming is known to be an excellent form of exercise and doing so in cold water can ease depression and pain-possibly by raising levels of mood regulating and painkilling chemicals in the blood and brain. It is no doubt an adrenaline rush. One dedicated swimmer says, “everything feels great. You feel healthy. And without any drugs or a bottle of whiskey.” I am willing to try this if I can find someone else to join me!
The search for the fountain of youth goes on and there may actually be some real progress. In the $250 billion anti-aging product industry there has finally been an apparent non cosmetic breakthrough. The compound is called nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide, or NAD+. Harvard Medical School has a center specializing in the biology of aging. The Executive Director reports “it’s one of the most important molecules for life to exist, and without it you are dead in 30 seconds.” “This molecule is found in all living cells and is critical for regulating cellular aging.” Add a few drops to aging mice causes them to look and act younger. Whether this goes through FDA for approval or appears sooner as a supplement is still to be seen. Tests are in progress and time will tell if we can easily turn back the cellular clock.
In the meantime we might look to the Amish for longevity ideas. The agrarian lifestyle includes no modern farm equipment, but shows that manual labor has benefits. In a study, Amish men took 18,425 steps per day and women took over 14,000. “The Amish are six times as active as a random sample of people from 12 countries.” Less than 4% of Amish people are obese compared to 36.5% of the US population which results in 50% lower rates of type 2 diabetes. The activity levels and diet support a 40% lower rates of cancer than the rest of the Ohio population. The Amish like their pancakes, eggs and sausage which might explain elevated cardiovascular disease rates. The Amish, according to a PLOS one survey, care for their elderly at home which pays huge health dividends. The study concludes, “ the power of family may trump the power of medicine.”
Olivia Waxman reports in an article titled, Should I make new Friends as I get older?, studies link loneliness to mortality – “the antidote is simple: friendship. It helps protect the brain and body from stress, anxiety and depression.”
Find a friend to go swimming this week. Mike