Week 1 - Cellular Mechanisms to Aging Flashcards
8 key health attributes
- vision
- hearing
- speech
- mobility
- dexterity
- feelings
- cognition
- pain
2 strategies to prevent functional decline
- primary prevention
- secondary prevention
Primary prevention of functional decline
- delay onset, reduce magnitude and/or prevent age-related decline of function
- greatest potential to extend healthspan, especially when prevention is applied over the life span
Secondary prevention of functional decline
- strategies to improve function in individuals that are already experiencing some decline in function
- goal is to prevent further decline, delay, or prevent onset of chronic disease or even improve function
Programmed aging
our cells have an intrinsic biological clock and are preprogrammed to function normally for only a specific length of time
Damaged/error-based aging
damage inside the cells builds up overtime, eventually causing the cells to malfunction
Biological theories of aging (2)
- programmed aging
- damage/error-based aging
Chronic inflammation
as we age, our levels of inflammation in the body slowly rises
Cellular senescence
cells get ‘old’ but instead of dying by apoptosis, they are dysfunctional and cause damage to cells around them
Stem cell exhaustion
stem cells eventually start to die off and thus new cells can no longer be made
Mitochondrial dysfunction
function decreases and impairs cell metabolism
telomere attrition
get shorter with each DNA replication and eventually become critically short so the DNA can no longer replicate
Epigenetic modifications
gene expression gets turned on or off due to malfunctioning at the genomic level
Genomic instability
DNA becomes more susceptible to mutations and damage
Dysregulated energy (nutrient) sensing
impaired energy metabolism in the cells
impaired protein homeostasis
proteins in cells are no longer doing their job or functioning properly and this wreaks havoc on the cells
What is the biggest risk factor for all major chronic diseases?
Aging
Lifestyle-behavioural strategies as prevention of aging
- regular physical activity
- healthy dietary practices
- conventional preventative medicine practices
What is the strongest evidence of preservation of physiological function with aging
regular, lifelong physical activity
What can help lengthen our telomeres?
- managing chronic stress
- exercising
- eating better
- getting enough sleep
Intermittent fasting and aging
- triggers autophagy i cells
- clean up cellular damage that builds with age
- induces cellular stress resistance
- longevity health benefits
Good diets for aging
- mediterranean diet
- DASH diet
Diets for aging should include what?
- anti-inflammatory
- antioxidants
- low fat/ good fat
- lower glycemic index
What are nutraceuticals?
foods or natural ingredients from food with potential health benefits that are beyond their basic nutritional value
