Three Women—Ages 41, 55 and 64—Share Their Secrets To Better Health and Longevity
Lil Eskey knows she cannot turn back the clock on her chronological age. Still, she’s incorporating healthy lifestyle practices to slow down her biological age for as long as possible.
The 41-year-old stay-at-home mother and former fitness instructor from Phoenix, Arizona, wants to maintain a youthful energy level because she is still raising young children.
“The biggest thing is being able to keep up with my kids and be totally active,” Eskey told Fox News Digital. “When my kids want to play at the park, it’s important to me that I’m not just sitting on the bench watching them. I want to be completely present for my kids and maintain a level of energy and vitality in life.”
Eskey noted that prioritizing sleep helps maintain her energy level and overall health.
“Good sleep is so underrated,” she said. “Having a consistent bedtime and wake-up time is so important for overall wellness. Everything works so much better when you’re well-rested, including any stressors in your life or anything going on with the mind.”
Julie Gibson Clark, a 55-year-old recruiter from Phoenix, Arizona, said prioritizing sleep is one of seven key areas she focuses on to help slow down biological aging.
“I like to think of longevity practices like a braid with three strands—exercise, eating right, and prioritizing sleep,” Clark told Fox News Digital. “And there’s an extra colorful strand in there: supplements. Each of these works together to help the others.”
Eskey and Clark participated in a six-month study on supplements designed to slow down the aging process. The supplements were supplied by NOVOS, a longevity supplements company that offers science-based products that target aging at its roots while boosting energy and metabolism and repairing DNA.
“As we age, our abilities to perform certain physical and cognitive tasks decline, while our risks for disease and ultimately death increase,” Chris Mirabile, CEO and founder of NOVOS, told Fox News Digital. “Although these changes are correlated with chronological age, biological age is a more accurate predictor because it looks at individuals and how well—or poorly—they are aging.”
NOVOS has tests to track a person’s current rate of aging and biological age. In addition to Eskey and Clark, Amy Hardison, a 64-year-old grandmother of 11 from Mesa, Arizona, also participated in the NOVOS trial. During the study, participants took three epigenetic tests, which analyzed DNA via a small blood sample to measure their “pace of aging.” At the end of the study, Eskey, Clark, and Hardison saw their biological pace of aging reduced after taking NOVOS supplements.
But, the three women do more than take supplements. Clark, Eskey, and Hardison also developed healthy lifestyle habits that can keep the aging process at bay. These practices include:
1. Physical movement
All three women found different ways to incorporate some type of movement into their day. For instance, Hardison said she has been exercising aerobically one hour a day, six days a week for 50 years and “rarely missed a day.” Her favorite exercises are swimming and working out on an elliptical.
Eskey said she pulls her son on a bike trailer when she takes him to preschool, grocery shopping, or anywhere else a few miles away. After dinner, Eskey said she and her family go on bike rides or jump on the trampoline.
Clark said she does cardio exercises and full-body strength training during the week.
2. Mental Health
Along with physical movement, the women have also prioritized their mental health. Eskey, for instance, said she does not use social media since it “just seems like an additional stressor on the body.”
Clark says she highly recommends taking cold showers and using saunas, both of which serves as a “natural antidepressant” for her and helps her to focus. She also practices meditation, which she called a “game-changer for stress and sleep.”
3. Diet
Health experts say eating fruits, vegetables, and low-fat meals can help support healthy aging. Clark said her diet consists of about 1 pound of vegetables each day and prioritizes 90 to 100 grams of healthy protein each day, which includes a mixture of vegan protein, collagen, pasture-raised meats, and eggs.
When it comes to diet and exercise, Hardison suggests that people find something that works for them and stick with it.
5 Tips To Slow Down Aging
With all the resources available, including online bloodwork and genetic platforms, women have a variety of ways to monitor their own health, according to Melanie Avalon, health influencer, entrepreneur, and host of The Intermittent Fasting Podcast.
Avalon, who also hosts The Melanie Avalon Biohacking Podcast, offered proactive tips to Fox News Digital that women can take to slow their pace of aging:
1. Improve Your Sleep Quality
Tossing and turning and hot flashes can diminish the sleep quality of aging women. To combat restless sleep, Avalon suggests women develop a “sleep sanctuary” that includes:
- Maintaining a wind-down routine and sleep schedule in a cool, dark environment.
- Using a cooling mattress.
- Turning off smartphones and electronics to prevent blue light exposure that can keep you awake.
- Finding the optimal sleeping position.
2. Find Support For Hormonal Changes When Needed
Women dread the perimenopausal years—the time around menopause when a woman’s body changes—because of the “seemingly inevitable rollercoaster of hormonal issues,” Avalon said.
However, women can support this natural transition by “nourishing their bodies with micronutrient-rich whole foods, getting ample sleep, addressing stress levels, and reducing their exposure to toxins,” Avalon said.
Hormone replacement therapy may be an option for some women, particularly those who may “find that the benefits outweigh the risks,” Avalon noted.
3. Optimize Muscle Mass
Muscle mass decreases during the aging process and the body does not produce the same amount of proteins needed for the muscles to grow. So, Avalon advises women to pay “careful attention” to their muscles and make sure they get plenty of leucine, an amino acid essential for protein synthesis and muscle growth. Some foods, such as beef, brown rice, eggs, and nuts, are good sources of leucine.
4. Check Your Health Metrics On a Regular Basis
Avalon recommends women work with their doctors to routinely monitor their blood pressure, blood sugar levels, cholesterol and bone density, as well as other markers of diseases.
5. Achieve proper glycemic control
According to Avalon, glycemic control is necessary to decrease the risk of cardiovascular disease, diabetes, and cognitive decline. To assist with glycemic control, Avalon suggests aging women “implement an unprocessed, whole-food-based diet, low to moderate in carbs, depending on their tolerance.” Women can also wear a continuous glucose monitor to track their blood sugar levels.
While Hardison says she does what she can to stay physically fit and mentally sharp, she acknowledges that there is only so much that she can control.
“There is even a limit to how much I am willing to invest in longevity,” Hardison told Fox Digital News. “Life is to be lived and enjoyed.”
Source Links:
https://www.foxnews.com/health/three-women-share-secrets-better-health-longevity
https://novoslabs.com/simple-explanations-of-the-hallmarks-of-aging/
