1
00:00:08,760 --> 00:00:12,600
Speaker 1: Hey, everyone, welcome to another edition of Wisdom Wednesdays. And

2
00:00:12,680 --> 00:00:17,279
Speaker 1: today we are continuing our series on the hallmarks abaging

3
00:00:17,280 --> 00:00:20,159
Speaker 1: and how to mitigate those hallmarks, and today we're going

4
00:00:20,200 --> 00:00:23,720
Speaker 1: to talk about telomere elettrition. Now, by the end of

5
00:00:23,720 --> 00:00:25,960
Speaker 1: this episode, I want you to know what telomeres are,

6
00:00:26,079 --> 00:00:30,440
Speaker 1: why they're important for our health, and how different interventions

7
00:00:30,480 --> 00:00:34,199
Speaker 1: can actually slow down this attrition of telomeres and keep

8
00:00:34,280 --> 00:00:38,320
Speaker 1: us biologically younger. So the analogy I've always liked to

9
00:00:38,400 --> 00:00:41,880
Speaker 1: use with telemeres is to think of your chromosomes, which

10
00:00:42,040 --> 00:00:45,640
Speaker 1: are the parts that contain all of your DNA, So

11
00:00:45,760 --> 00:00:48,600
Speaker 1: all your genes are basically held in your chromosomes. You

12
00:00:48,680 --> 00:00:51,720
Speaker 1: get your twenty six pers, you get twenty six from mom,

13
00:00:51,760 --> 00:00:55,600
Speaker 1: twenty six from Dad. And these chromosomes they've got like

14
00:00:55,840 --> 00:01:00,400
Speaker 1: a little end, a little cap that protects it. And

15
00:01:00,480 --> 00:01:02,920
Speaker 1: this is kind of like the analogy I use is

16
00:01:02,920 --> 00:01:06,880
Speaker 1: as shoelas. So the shoelace is the chromosome, and in

17
00:01:06,959 --> 00:01:09,479
Speaker 1: the shoelias is all your DNA, all your genes, and

18
00:01:09,520 --> 00:01:12,560
Speaker 1: then the little plastic cap on the end of your

19
00:01:12,600 --> 00:01:17,000
Speaker 1: shoelas is the telomere. And what it does is it

20
00:01:17,160 --> 00:01:21,440
Speaker 1: actually protects and your obviously your lises from praying are

21
00:01:21,440 --> 00:01:25,240
Speaker 1: sticking together, and it basically is protecting the end of

22
00:01:25,280 --> 00:01:28,959
Speaker 1: your chromosome from damage. And then what would happen if

23
00:01:28,959 --> 00:01:33,320
Speaker 1: that telomere shortens too much, Our DNA on ravels and

24
00:01:33,360 --> 00:01:37,760
Speaker 1: that leads to cellular chaos and dysfunction. So each time

25
00:01:37,920 --> 00:01:41,360
Speaker 1: your cell divides, it gets a little shorter. And let

26
00:01:41,400 --> 00:01:43,280
Speaker 1: me take a step back here. You don't have any

27
00:01:43,319 --> 00:01:45,320
Speaker 1: cells in your body that you're born with. I think

28
00:01:45,360 --> 00:01:47,680
Speaker 1: the longest liver living cell in the body is the

29
00:01:47,720 --> 00:01:49,640
Speaker 1: liver cell. It's about a year and a half to

30
00:01:49,760 --> 00:01:55,400
Speaker 1: two years. So our cells are constantly dividing and basically

31
00:01:55,480 --> 00:01:59,680
Speaker 1: they're giving birth to daughter cells, and these telomeres get

32
00:01:59,720 --> 00:02:03,320
Speaker 1: shown water every time the cell divides, and when it

33
00:02:03,320 --> 00:02:06,800
Speaker 1: becomes too short, the cell can no longer divide properly,

34
00:02:07,760 --> 00:02:11,519
Speaker 1: and either it becomes sinescent and which is an aging,

35
00:02:11,800 --> 00:02:15,639
Speaker 1: non functional kind of zombie cell, or it dies. Now,

36
00:02:15,720 --> 00:02:19,200
Speaker 1: this process is a natural part of eugen but when

37
00:02:19,280 --> 00:02:23,480
Speaker 1: telling me, are shortening happens too quickly, it then contributes

38
00:02:23,760 --> 00:02:26,800
Speaker 1: to diseases of aging such as cancer, heart disease, and

39
00:02:26,880 --> 00:02:30,679
Speaker 1: cognitive decline. So tell me attrition is caused by a

40
00:02:30,800 --> 00:02:33,160
Speaker 1: number of things. So that cell division, as we said,

41
00:02:33,200 --> 00:02:35,840
Speaker 1: every time the cell set replicates, to tell me is

42
00:02:35,919 --> 00:02:38,120
Speaker 1: use a bit of length. And then the next thing

43
00:02:38,320 --> 00:02:44,120
Speaker 1: is oxidative stress. So free radicals, these are unstaable molecules

44
00:02:44,680 --> 00:02:48,640
Speaker 1: that are produced by processes like our own metabolism. Just

45
00:02:49,000 --> 00:02:54,600
Speaker 1: using oxygen for energy actually produces free radicals and they

46
00:02:55,000 --> 00:02:58,720
Speaker 1: can damage our DNA and accelerate, telling me you're shortening.

47
00:02:59,480 --> 00:03:02,840
Speaker 1: The other thing that is damaging as well is inflammation.

48
00:03:03,360 --> 00:03:06,799
Speaker 1: So this is inflammation at a cellular level, and this

49
00:03:07,040 --> 00:03:11,640
Speaker 1: chronic low grade inflammation can increase the rate of telomere loss.

50
00:03:11,680 --> 00:03:18,640
Speaker 1: And this can be from having basically mitochondrial dysfunction, or

51
00:03:19,120 --> 00:03:24,600
Speaker 1: are having your metabolism go awry, or having certain conditions

52
00:03:25,000 --> 00:03:29,639
Speaker 1: inflammatory conditions such as all sort of colitis or these

53
00:03:29,680 --> 00:03:32,760
Speaker 1: sorts of things, or just anything where basically your body

54
00:03:32,840 --> 00:03:36,600
Speaker 1: is not operating well. There will be this chronic low

55
00:03:36,640 --> 00:03:39,640
Speaker 1: grade inflammation that does a whole hYP of nasty stuff.

56
00:03:40,040 --> 00:03:42,880
Speaker 1: One of them is increasing the rate of telemere loss.

57
00:03:43,200 --> 00:03:47,920
Speaker 1: And then we know that lifestyle factors such as per diet,

58
00:03:48,000 --> 00:03:51,720
Speaker 1: a lack of exercise, chronic stress, and smoking, they all

59
00:03:51,800 --> 00:03:55,600
Speaker 1: hess and tell me are shortening partly because they create

60
00:03:55,600 --> 00:03:59,080
Speaker 1: oxidative stress and inflammation. And there may be some independent

61
00:03:59,080 --> 00:04:03,320
Speaker 1: mechanisms that happen as well. Right, Nie, what do we

62
00:04:03,400 --> 00:04:07,280
Speaker 1: know that is useful? Well, surprise, surprise. The biggest thing

63
00:04:07,560 --> 00:04:11,880
Speaker 1: is exercise. We know that regular physical activity boosts the

64
00:04:11,920 --> 00:04:18,360
Speaker 1: body's production of indogenous antioxidants, which neutralize these free radicals,

65
00:04:18,920 --> 00:04:22,359
Speaker 1: and then that then protects your telomeres. Right, and so

66
00:04:22,839 --> 00:04:27,240
Speaker 1: I think I Mada mentioned last week. You're indogenous antioxidants

67
00:04:27,279 --> 00:04:33,320
Speaker 1: such as superoxide, dismutas, glutotheram, perioxidase, and catalas. They are

68
00:04:33,440 --> 00:04:37,880
Speaker 1: like the special forces of your antioxidant defense system, and

69
00:04:38,120 --> 00:04:42,279
Speaker 1: exercise is the best thing to boost your production of

70
00:04:42,320 --> 00:04:49,400
Speaker 1: these things. Secondly is lowering inflammation. So exercise reduces chronic inflammation.

71
00:04:49,680 --> 00:04:53,520
Speaker 1: It lowers levels of inflammatory markers like sea reactive protein.

72
00:04:53,960 --> 00:04:57,279
Speaker 1: And the reason that exercise does this is because a

73
00:04:57,320 --> 00:04:59,919
Speaker 1: lot of the mile kinds that I've talked about before,

74
00:05:00,080 --> 00:05:04,960
Speaker 1: these molecules that are produced from contracting muscle are actually

75
00:05:05,120 --> 00:05:10,080
Speaker 1: anti inflammatory molecules. Now, the third way that exercise can

76
00:05:10,120 --> 00:05:14,680
Speaker 1: be useful for your telomeres is it activates telomerius. Now,

77
00:05:14,720 --> 00:05:19,240
Speaker 1: telomerius is an enzyme that helps to maintain and even

78
00:05:19,360 --> 00:05:24,640
Speaker 1: rebuild our telomeres, and studies show that regular physical activity

79
00:05:24,680 --> 00:05:29,279
Speaker 1: can increase telomerius activity, essentially adding a protective shield to

80
00:05:29,320 --> 00:05:33,000
Speaker 1: your DNA. And then the fourth thing is improving your

81
00:05:33,080 --> 00:05:38,599
Speaker 1: mitochondrial health. So exercise enhances our mitochondrial efficiency. It can

82
00:05:39,800 --> 00:05:46,279
Speaker 1: basically create mitochondrial repair and also mitochondrial biogenesis, which means

83
00:05:46,320 --> 00:05:51,320
Speaker 1: brand spanking new mitochondris, especially high intensity inibal training. And

84
00:05:51,400 --> 00:05:55,720
Speaker 1: what this does when your mitochondria are more efficient, it

85
00:05:55,800 --> 00:05:59,440
Speaker 1: reduces the production of damage in free radicals and creates

86
00:05:59,440 --> 00:06:02,880
Speaker 1: a healthy cellular environment for our telomeres. Now, the evidence

87
00:06:02,880 --> 00:06:06,440
Speaker 1: around exercise is pretty damn compelling. A study of over

88
00:06:06,600 --> 00:06:10,080
Speaker 1: six thousand adults found that those who were physically active

89
00:06:10,080 --> 00:06:15,240
Speaker 1: had significantly longer telomeres compared to century individuals, and the

90
00:06:15,360 --> 00:06:18,880
Speaker 1: difference in biological aging in the two groups was a

91
00:06:18,960 --> 00:06:24,080
Speaker 1: whopping nine years. And another study revealed that in both

92
00:06:24,200 --> 00:06:29,359
Speaker 1: endurance training and high intensity interval training were especially effective

93
00:06:29,400 --> 00:06:34,480
Speaker 1: at boosting telomera as activity and reducing telomere shortening. Now,

94
00:06:34,600 --> 00:06:37,960
Speaker 1: other things that you can do that will help your

95
00:06:38,080 --> 00:06:42,440
Speaker 1: telomeres is a healthy diet, particularly one that is rich

96
00:06:42,480 --> 00:06:46,800
Speaker 1: in antioxidants and nutrient dense and probably the best studied

97
00:06:46,839 --> 00:06:49,280
Speaker 1: one out there would be the Mediterranean diet. It has

98
00:06:49,320 --> 00:06:53,600
Speaker 1: been shown to reduce oxidive stress and inflammation, which protects

99
00:06:53,600 --> 00:06:59,279
Speaker 1: telomeres so. Foods like leafy greens, nots, berries, fatty fish,

100
00:06:59,320 --> 00:07:05,320
Speaker 1: sterol great components of the Mediterranean diet. Next is about

101
00:07:05,400 --> 00:07:10,760
Speaker 1: stress management, So anything that you're doing, whether it's exercise,

102
00:07:10,840 --> 00:07:17,600
Speaker 1: mindfulness and yoga, cognitive reframing, acceptance, commitment therapy, just managing

103
00:07:17,720 --> 00:07:22,720
Speaker 1: stress is really really important because we know that chronic

104
00:07:22,800 --> 00:07:27,240
Speaker 1: stress definitely accelerates telling me shortening. And then the next

105
00:07:27,280 --> 00:07:30,080
Speaker 1: thing linked to this won't be a surprise, is quality sleep.

106
00:07:30,480 --> 00:07:34,240
Speaker 1: We know that per sleep increases inflammation and oxidative stress

107
00:07:34,560 --> 00:07:37,280
Speaker 1: and they contribute to telling me or attrition, and we've

108
00:07:37,280 --> 00:07:41,080
Speaker 1: done plenty of podcasts on sleep. And then the last one,

109
00:07:41,280 --> 00:07:44,880
Speaker 1: really big one, would be avoiding smoking and excessive alcohol.

110
00:07:44,960 --> 00:07:48,480
Speaker 1: Both of them are linked to increased oxidative stress and inflammation,

111
00:07:48,560 --> 00:07:53,040
Speaker 1: which obviously damages are telemeres so. In terms of practicalities,

112
00:07:53,680 --> 00:07:58,640
Speaker 1: exercising regularly, making sure you're at least heading the recommended

113
00:07:58,680 --> 00:08:01,720
Speaker 1: guidelines of one hundred and fifty to three hundred minutes

114
00:08:01,720 --> 00:08:06,119
Speaker 1: of moderate physical activity or seventy five and fifty minutes

115
00:08:06,120 --> 00:08:10,800
Speaker 1: of vigorous activity. Incorporating strength training benefits for those extra things.

116
00:08:11,800 --> 00:08:15,000
Speaker 1: Doing stuff that helps to manage your stress, whether it's yoga,

117
00:08:15,040 --> 00:08:19,640
Speaker 1: whether it's breath work, cognitive reframing, any of those things.

118
00:08:19,680 --> 00:08:22,840
Speaker 1: And or a little icky guy, just a little habit

119
00:08:23,840 --> 00:08:27,120
Speaker 1: or a little hobby, sorry I should say not habit,

120
00:08:27,120 --> 00:08:31,440
Speaker 1: a little hobby that gets you engaged. Eating that good diet,

121
00:08:31,560 --> 00:08:36,319
Speaker 1: particularly all the colleagues of the Rainbow for antioxidant defense

122
00:08:36,360 --> 00:08:40,280
Speaker 1: and prioritizing our sleep really really key things to do.

123
00:08:40,440 --> 00:08:44,120
Speaker 1: So we know that the telemetrition is a natural part

124
00:08:44,120 --> 00:08:47,640
Speaker 1: of aging and you can't do away with it completely,

125
00:08:48,240 --> 00:08:52,280
Speaker 1: but it doesn't have to go unchecked by adapting a

126
00:08:52,840 --> 00:08:56,520
Speaker 1: lifestyle that includes regular exercise, healthy eating, stress management, good sleep,

127
00:08:56,600 --> 00:08:59,120
Speaker 1: all the stuff that we know is really important. It

128
00:08:59,120 --> 00:09:02,640
Speaker 1: actually protects our telomeres as well. And one other thing

129
00:09:02,720 --> 00:09:04,760
Speaker 1: you can take. I did see some research years ago.

130
00:09:04,800 --> 00:09:07,880
Speaker 1: I haven't followed it up, but there is you can

131
00:09:07,960 --> 00:09:12,320
Speaker 1: actually buy a supplements that can increase telomery is. But

132
00:09:12,400 --> 00:09:14,959
Speaker 1: the last time I looked years ago and they were

133
00:09:15,080 --> 00:09:19,719
Speaker 1: very expensive and there wasn't very good quality evidence about them.

134
00:09:19,760 --> 00:09:22,560
Speaker 1: But as I said, I haven't checked that, so maybe

135
00:09:22,600 --> 00:09:25,880
Speaker 1: just do a quick check around. Stuff that activates to

136
00:09:26,000 --> 00:09:29,400
Speaker 1: lomery is that is the enzyme. So that's it for

137
00:09:29,440 --> 00:09:32,480
Speaker 1: this week, folks, catch you. Next time we will talk

138
00:09:32,520 --> 00:09:40,480
Speaker 1: about another hallmark of aging and how to mitigate it