Anti aging supplements play a very important role in slowing down the aging process and enjoying your senior years feeling healthy and energetic. There are many natural vitamins supplements to choose from, all designed to give your body just what it lacks to feel good.
Top 10 Anti Aging Supplements
Calorie restriction is generally considered the gold standard to slowing down the aging process, but anti aging supplements are not to be ignored.
Here are the top ten most beneficial in fighting the challenges of the aging process:
1. DHEA Supplements (dehydroepiandrosterone) consist of an adrenal hormone that is the precursor for steroid hormones such as estrogen and testosterone. DHEA declines precipitously with aging, in both men and women. DHEA gained ground in the medical establishment when the New York Academy of Sciences published a book entitled DHEA and Aging, providing scientific validation for the many life extending effects of DHEA supplements.
2. Testosterone Supplements – the hormonal stimulus for sex drive, in both men and women, is testosterone. In both sexes, however, testosterone levels decline with advancing age. The hormone also plays an important role in maintaining muscle mass, as well as strength and bone density, and it is often administered to aging men and women as a topical cream. Oral testosterone supplements and injectable forms are available as well.
3. Estrogen and Progesterone Supplements – The female hormones estrogen and progesterone play a great part in maintaining bone density and strength, sexual function, mental function and, in women, countering the effects of menopause.
According to recent studies of aging process, estrogen may also be an effective treatment for age-associated memory problems. Both estrogen and progesterone supplements are available in a variety of forms, either natural or synthetic, oral or topical. Moreover, there is a growing interest towards the use of plant-derived phytoestrogents, which have weak, but safe estrogenic activity, as a possible replacement for drug forms of estrogen. Natural Estrogen, for instance, is a product specifically designed for this purpose.
4. Melatonin is a hormone produced by the pineal gland, which is located beneath the brain. Melatonin is a powerful antioxidant, which has been described as the pacemaker of the aging clock in humans.
Melatonin is released every night as part of our time-dependent biorhythms, in order to help induce sleep and recuperation from fatigue. According to several published studies, maintaining proper levels of melatonin is very important in protecting against age-related degenerative diseases.
5. Pregnenolone Supplements – Pregnenolone is the precursos of a number of hormones, including DHEA, testosterone and estrogen. According to studies, the neurosteroid Pregnenolone has a stimulatory effect on memory.
Coenzyme Q10 (CoQ10) Supplements – CoQ10 is an essential component of healthy mitochondrial function. Incorporated into the cells’ mitochondria throughout the body, Coenzyme Q10 facilitates and regulates the oxidation of fats and sugars into energy.
Aging individuals have been found to have more than 50 percent less CoQ10 on average compared to that of young adults, making CoQ10 one of the most important nutrients for people over 30.
Roughly 95 percent of cellular energy is produced in the mitochondria – the cells’ “energy powerhouses”, and many maladies have been called “mitochondrial disorders”. Increasingly more scientific research links a CoQ10 deficiency to age-related mitochondrial disorders.
7. The acetyl-L-carnitine amino acid has the ability to facilitate fatty acid transport and oxidation in the cell, thus boosting mitochondrial energy production. With the discovery of acetyl-L-carnitine arginate, the benefits of acetyl-L-carnitine can now be considerably augmented.
Acetyl-L-carnitine arginate is a patented form of carnitine, stimulating the growth of neurites in the brain. According to studies, acetyl-L-carnitine arginate stimulates the growth of new neurites by a whopping 19.5 percent – as much as Nerve Growth Factor itself. Acetyl-L-carnitine arginate acts together with acetyl-L-carnitine to increase neurite outgrowth.
8. Aspirin – the most common cause of disability and death in the U.S. is an abnormal clot that develops inside an artery, causing a heart attack (blocked blood vessel in the heart) or a stroke (blocked blood vessel in the brain). Aspirin has an immediate and lasting effect on blood platelets, making them less likely to clump together, thus allowing blood to flow smoothly.
9. Carnosine is a multifunctional dipeptide consisting of a chemical combination of the amino acids beta-alanine and L-histidine, and it can be found both in food and in the human body.
Long-lived cells such as nerve cells (neurons) and muscle cells (myocytes) contain high levels of carnosine, but these levels decline with age. Muscle levels of carnosine correlate with the maximum life spans of animals.
From age 10 to age 70, muscle levels decline 63 percent, which may account for the normal age-related decline in muscle mass and function. Carnosine acts as a pH buffer, being able to continue protecting muscle cell membranes from oxidation under the acidic conditions of muscular exertion.
Carnosine allows the heart muscle to contract more efficiently through enhancement of calcium response in heart myocytes.
10. Fish Oil Supplements – According to a report published by an agency of the National Institutes of Health, fish oil can actually help reduce deaths from heart disease. Moreover, the FDA itself states that supportive, though not conclusive research shows consumption of EPA and DHA omega-3 fatty acids may in fact reduce the risk of coronary heart disease.
The latest government report highlights the triglyceride-lowering effects of fish oil on reducing heart and blood vessel disorders, but there are several other beneficial mechanisms attributed to the effects of fish oil, including protecting healthy blood flow in arteries.
It is well-known that a diet restricted in calories but rich in nutrients can dramatically extend the life span in a variety of species. The effectiveness of this anti aging approach is astounding, however the difficulty of the regimen is far greater for most people. Still, those who aspire to a healthy aging should try at least a mild version of the diet, because fish oils are among the best anti aging supplements.