What is really Aging Your Skin

December 31, 2014

What is really Aging Your Skin – Tips to preserve the youthfulness of your skin

What is really Aging Your Skin. Stress can make you tense up and grimace or frown, often without you even realizing it and in the process facilitates aging of your skin

For sure nothing defines your age more than your skin. You may think of the development of grey hair as a defining moment of aging, but this can easily be colored with hair dye, however once your skin has begun to show the signs of age it can be very difficult to make it look young again. This is one reason why professionals all over the world are making effort to come up with treatment methods which can correct this situation. At AWAREmed Health and Wellness Resource Center under Doctor Akoury’s care where focus is on Neuroendocrine Restoration (NER) to reinstate normality through realization of the oneness of Spirit, Mind, and Body, Unifying the threesome into ONE. Keeping your skin healthy and vibrant is also our core concerns. At this facility, doctor Akoury offers all the needed skin care solutions that will keep you more youthful and glamorous for a very long time. Because of the great effects emanating from the improper skincare, we understand your worries about what is really aging your skin. That is why doctor Akoury is here for you to offer lasting solution to all your worries only if you can schedule for an appointment with her today.

Nonetheless your skin is actually the largest organ in your body and it is very important to keep it as healthy as you would do to your heart, lungs and liver. Remember that the skin protects us from the extremes of our environment and from pollutants in the air around us. Fortunately the same things that will keep your skin healthy will also keep it younger looking.

Wear an SPF of 30 year round.
Try to avoid high levels of stress by incorporating activities such as meditation, yoga, and walking into your routine.
Drink herbal teas that contain antioxidants.
Wear sunglasses that provide 100% UV ray protection.
Humidifiers can help replenish moisture in the air to minimize the depletion of moisture from your skin through evaporation.
Get plenty of sleep. Research shows that skin regenerates itself between the hours of 10pm and 3am.
Nourish your skin with an anti-aging cream. As you apply your facial moisturizer, take some time to work it gently into your skin with light massaging strokes.
Healthy eating is vital to skin regeneration. Choose foods that are fresh and not processed and drink plenty of water.

In an attempt to answer the question “what is really aging your skin?” Fixing the following pitfalls will be very important even though we know that many factors other than genes and the sun affects the skin. The phenomenon of skin aging is as a result of many things. There is a lot more you can do to control skin aging as discussed below:

What is really Aging Your Skin – Sweet treats

If you tell me that you like sugary foods, I will agree with you because for sure they are sweet. Nonetheless, when sugar breaks down and enters into the blood system, it unites with protein molecules, including those found in collagen and elastin fibers that support skin, through a process called glycation. This degrades the collagen and elastin, which in turn leads to sagging and wrinkles.

Preventive measures – this can be controlled by reducing the consumption of simple carbohydrates like soft drinks and candy, but also seemingly innocuous choices, such as honey, white rice, and white bread. These foods are quickly converted into sugar in your body and put your skin on the fast track to glycation. If you need something sweet a small square of dark chocolate will be appropriate. The antioxidants in it can protect you from free radicals, those unstable atoms in the atmosphere that latch on to skin and lead to fine lines. Also, increase your intake of vitamin C. It helps generate collagen.

What is really Aging Your Skin – Frequent Flying?

For those who use air transport a lot being in the plane means that you’re very close to the sun and so solar rays can easily pass through the windows at a more intense and higher altitude no wonder many pilots and flight attendants have been found to be at an increased risk for melanoma and other skin cancers. It must also be noted that the air in the space is dry and without moisture and so the skin, like any living tissue will simply shrivels.

Preventive measures – the solution to this would be drinking lots of water when on flight and also avoiding alcohol and salty foods, which are dehydrating and apply a rich moisturizer with SPF 15 or higher 30 minutes before boarding, as sunscreen needs time to be absorbed before its effective. If you sit next to the window it is advisable that you pull down the shade.

What is really Aging Your Skin – Untamed Tension?

Stress is a big enemy to the skin therefore when you’re under intense or chronic pressure, your body increases production of the hormone cortisol, which can damage collagen and elastin and decrease the skin’s ability to repair itself. Furthermore, stress can make you tense up and grimace or frown, often without you even realizing it. If this persists over time, the muscle contractions can leave their mark in the form of permanent lines.

Preventive measures – stress and anxiety must be eliminated by all means. For instance Yoga, Tai Chi, and brisk walking are some of the most effective tension tamers, probably because of the meditative aspect they come with. (The deep or rhythmic breathing of yoga and Tai Chi probably helps too, by promoting healthy circulation.) If your work schedule does not allow you to exercise well, then you may need to break shortly for even 20-30 minutes take a walk to your lunch joint and back.

What is really Aging Your Skin – Weight Fluctuations?

Packing on pounds can make your skin look plumper on the surface, but carrying excess weight can cause your body’s levels of insulin (a hormone made by the pancreas that controls the amount of sugar in your blood) and cortisol to rise, which can break down collagen. Adding even a little weight will definitely trigger skin sagging.

Preventive measures – keeping the correct weight is not very easy and therefore it will be necessary that you schedule for an appointment with doctor Akoury who is also an expert in weight loss. She will evaluate your condition and advice you professionally on how to shed off the excess pounds in the most healthy and natural way.

What is really Aging Your Skin – Midlife Moisture Loss?

As for women in menopause, their body may begin pumping out less estrogen. Since estrogen stimulates oil and collagen production in the skin, your skin may become drier, more wrinkled, and saggy as the estrogen levels drop.

Preventive measures – Hormone replacement therapy (HRT) can offset some of these effects, but it can take time to find the exact combination of hormones that your body responds to. For more instant results, you might consider dermal fillers, which are injected into the skin to fill in wrinkles and plump up sagging areas. You can consult with doctor Akoury for professional input on this and many more concerns about what is really aging your skin.

What is really Aging Your Skin – Tips to preserve the youthfulness of your skin

Mechanisms of Inflammation in Aging

December 30, 2014

Mechanisms of Inflammation in Aging – The redox stress hypothesis

Mechanisms of Inflammation in Aging. Numerous complex inter-related mechanisms contribute to age-related inflammation. The redox stress hypothesis of aging is based on age-related changes in cellular redox balance.

We have just introduced the effects of inflammation in aging in our pervious article and now we want to progress with the discussion focusing on the mechanisms of inflammation in aging. If you are joining us for the first time in this life changing site, I would recommend that you get to the introduction for a better flow of information on this worthy topic. Numerous complex inter-related mechanisms contribute to age-related inflammation. The redox stress hypothesis of aging for example is based on age-related changes in cellular redox balance supplemented by age-related deregulation of the immune system. However other processes like endocrino-senescence and declining levels of sex hormones also likely contribute to high inflammation in older age. In addition, a number of diseases, especially age-related diseases such as atherosclerosis and dementia, have strong inflammatory components. Meanwhile in view of the experts at AWAREmed Health and Wellness Resource Center under Doctor Akoury’s care, the following are some of the components that are likely to affect your skin into premature aging.

Redox stress
Mitochondrial damage
Immunosenescence
Endocrino-senescence
Epigenetic modifications and
Age-related diseases

With the help of experienced experts at this facility founded by doctor Akoury, we will make certain emphasis about each of the above mechanisms of inflammation in aging as follows.

Mechanisms of Inflammation in Aging – The Redox stress

Endogenous reactive oxygen species (ROS) are hypothesized which play a key role in molecular, cellular, and structural damage of your skin over time. Under normal physiological conditions, reactive oxygen species like hydrogen peroxide (H₂O₂) have vital roles in signal transduction cascades and function to reversibly oxidize or reduce protein cysteine thiol groups as molecular on/off switches. However, age-associated increases in reactive oxygen species may lead to over-oxidation and irreversible changes in protein structure and function. The biological process to remove these accumulated damaged proteins stimulates inflammatory responses leading to a chronic inflammatory state.

Mechanisms of Inflammation in Aging – The Mitochondrial damage

Mitochondria, the primary sites for chemical energy (ATP) production, are essential for normal cell function and maintenance of redox homeostasis as well as regulating programmed cell death. Mitochondria are the main source for reactive oxygen species therefore; they are key components in redox stress. The mitochondrial free radical theory of aging is based on oxidative damage to mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) due to overproduction of reactive oxygen species. This damage results in dysregulation of cell and organ function leading to the overall system decline recognized as aging. mtDNA alterations have been reported to accumulate with age; the ensuing loss of energy production likely underlies sarcopenia. Other tissues affected by age-related mtDNA alterations include ovary, testis, and adrenal organs with noted loss of function with age. In addition, apoptosis, or programmed cell death, is a highly regulated process that leads to cell death without stimulation of the inflammation response and damage to surrounding tissue. With age, mismanagement of apoptosis due to mitochondrial dysfunction results in increased inflammation and tissue injury.

Mechanisms of Inflammation in Aging – Immunosenescence

Oxidative stress and energy dysregulation are also hypothesized to play a key role in immunosenescence, the gradual decline of the immune system with age. Immunosenescence results from the accumulation of molecular and cellular defects due to oxidative damage and thymic involution the age-related reduction in thymus size and activity, and hyper stimulation of both the innate and adaptive immune systems. The ultimate result of these processes is increased exposure to diseases and increased morbidity and mortality due to infections and other age-associated diseases.

Thymic involution results in significantly reduced levels of naive T cells at older ages. While the adaptive immune response to previously seen antigens dependent on memory T cells remains functional, although in a reduced capacity, the ability to respond to new infectious agents, requiring naive T cells, is severely impaired. Poor immune function combined with continued exposure to antigens, results in chronic activation of macrophages and other pro-inflammatory cells and contributes to chronic low level inflammation common in older age. In addition, senescent cells demonstrate significant increases in production and secretion of many pro-inflammatory cytokines. Chronic inflammation, therefore, not only results from, but also drives immunosenescence.

Mechanisms of Inflammation in Aging – Endocrino-senescence

In addition to immunosenescence, the endocrine system also experiences age-related declines in function (endocrinosenescence) most notably affecting sex steroid production. Levels of growth hormone and dehydroepiandrosterone (DHEA) and its primary circulating form dehydroepiandrosterone sulfate (DHEAS) decrease with age as well. However, cortisol production is increased due to over-stimulation of the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis.

Chronic over-stimulation of the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis leads to immune dysregulation and contributes to immunosenescence. Decreased levels of DHEA and growth hormone also likely play a role in immunosenescence. Both DHEA and growth hormone enhance the proliferation and activity of cellular mediators of immunity and DHEA reduces inflammatory cytokine production. Reduction in levels of these hormones and increasing levels of cortisol with age would therefore lead to increased.

Sex hormones also modulate the production of inflammatory cytokines. Studies indicate that interleukin-6 gene transcription and secretion are inhibited by both estrogen and androgen. Many studies show an increase in interleukin-6 and other pro-inflammatory cytokines in women subsequent to menopause. Similar inverse relationships have been reported for testosterone levels and inflammatory markers in older men. As levels of these steroid hormones decrease with age, levels of inflammatory cytokines are increased contributing to chronic inflammation, cellular senescence, and other age-related diseases.

Mechanisms of Inflammation in Aging – Epigenetic modifications

Epigenetic modifications are modifications to phenotypes or gene expression resulting from changes other than changes in the underlying DNA sequence. These changes may be retained by the cell throughout its lifespan and, for germ line cells, may be passed to future generations. DNA methylation is one of the most well characterized epigenetic changes.

DNA methylation is essential for normal development and survival. During aging, however, the DNA methylation pattern can change resulting in a global decrease in methylation with hyper methylation of some promoter regions, most notably promoters of several tumor repressor genes. Histone modifications lead to both gene activation and suppression. Histone modifications and changes in DNA methylation near telomeric regions correlate with telomere attrition and cellular senescence. In addition, these epigenetic changes are associated not only with activation of inflammatory genes, but also with cancer, dementia, atherosclerosis, and a number of other diseases.

Finally this article is very fertile with strong medical terms which may not sound clear to the ordinary man’s understanding. While appreciating the need for more clear view of the effects of mechanisms of inflammation in aging, the writings still had to be the way they are. However in a one on one with doctor Akoury in her office, you will be able to get clarity in all of your concerns. Remember that our target is to deliver beauty to you in the most professional way. Therefore on your part, what you need to do is to schedule for an appointment with the experts at AWAREmed Health and Wellness Resource Center under Doctor Akoury’s care and all your beauty concerns will be professionally addressed.

Mechanisms of Inflammation in Aging – The redox stress hypothesis

Tag Archives: Aging