Unlocking the Genetic Secrets to Living Healthier and Longer
Dramatic new scientific discoveries have unlocked the genetic secrets to a longer and healthier life. As so often happens with great discoveries, the answers turn out to be based on an incredibly simple idea: by ingesting natural plant molecules with which we have coexisted for millions of years, we can switch genes on and off to benefit from their anti-inflammatory, anticancer, antibacterial, and blood sugar normalizing effects and live longer!
Although most research to date has focused on- resveratrol as the primary gene activating compound, with the greatest number of health benefits, thousands of other polyphenol compounds found in plants and plant products have similar health benefits. In fact, many scientists believe it is a combination of these polyphenols found in plants themselves-rand not just a single ingredient-that provides the most stable source of healthy gene activating molecules. This is why a daily glass or two of red wine, which contains not just resveratrol but a combination of more than five hundred other polyphenols, provides such scientifically well-documented health benefits.
The resveratrol story is still evolving rapidly. After reviewing thousands of medical articles, books, and scientific studies and visiting David Sinclair’s mouse lab at Harvard Medical School, I believe that we are already beginning to see a tidal wave in the world of gene activating food additives and supplements. As more and more are discovered, they will be added to the foods we eat as supplements, until one day they will be as common as folic acid is now in prenatal vitamins, preventing devastating birth defects. The products available and recommended today may be substantially increased in number or modified in other ways over the next few years-or even months-on the basis of results of ongoing scientific laboratory and human studies.
Recognizing this, we still have remarkable opportunities to make the most of the scientific discoveries to date. What should you do? In accordance with the principles that I have outlined in these pages, there are four ways you can access the secrets of genetics to live longer and healthier.
1. Eat and drink natural foods with the highest polyphenol antioxidant content, such as red wine, grape juice, green tea, dark chocolate, and apples.
2. Take supplements containing superconcentrated polyphenol and resveratrol from natural sources.
3. Take resveratrol, with or without additional polyphenols, as a dietary supplement.
4. Use a prescription resveratrol-like drug. Let’s look at each of these individually.
We have discussed polyphenols’ role in preventing inflammation and possibly cancer, heart attacks, and strokes as well. The earliest recorded use of polyphenols to cure disease dates back to the North America of the French explorer Jacques Cartier in 1534. He and his crew were near death when they were revived by a Native American concoction of pine bark and needles that was extremely rich in a particular polyphenol called procyanidin. This potent antioxidant, now marketed as pycnogenol for its effect on the heart and blood vessels, is part of the same family of polyphenols that provide amazing health benefits and are found in red wine, chocolate, blueberries, cranberries, and more. It too is produced by plants to defend themselves against funguses, toxins, and environmental stresses such as excessive heat or cold, extremes in humidity, and the sun’s ultraviolet rays. Let’s take a closer look at the remarkable health benefits of a few of the most popular foods with the highest resveratrol-antloxidant content.
STEP – 1 TAKE RESVERATROL
Health Benefits of Resveratrol from Red Wine
Hundreds of scientific studies indicate that no more than two glasses of red wine per day for a man and one glass for a woman may provide the following health benefits:
• Reduces the risk of death from nearly all causes: Studies from France, the U.K, Finland, and Denmark indicate that moderate consumption of wine is more beneficial than beer or spirits in promoting longevity
• Helps prevent coronary heart disease by reducing low-density lipoprotein (lDL) cholesterol and boosting high-density lipoprotein (HDL) cholesterol.
• Produces anticlotting action that prevents the formation of lifethreatening blood clots.
• Prevents hardening of the arteries by promoting the formation of nitric oxide, the key relaxing factor for vascular tone.
• Can lower blood pressure in people with hypertension.
• Decreases the risk of kidney stone formation.
• Decreases the risk of Alzheimer’s disease.
• Decreases the harmful effects of smoking on the lining of the blood vessels.
Is It the Resveratrol, the Alcohol, or the OtherPolyphenols? Although red wines from Pinot Nair, Merlot, grenache, Cabernet Sauvignon, and ternpranillo grapes have the highest resveratrol content, the total amount in a bottle of wine is still relatively low. Depending on the grape type, it may range from minimal to 40 milligrams per liter.
Chemicals now used in most commercial vineyards to suppress the fungal stresses on grapes result in a lower resveratrol content. However, there are several boutique wineries that use special resveratrol activating techniques to boost the amount of resveratrol in their wines.
But by consuming approximately two average-sized glasses of red wine a day, we would still consume no more than 10 milligrams of resveratrol.
That’s where resveratrol supplements come into play.
STEP 2 – Drink Grape Juice
STEP 3 – Get on Resveratrol Diet
STEP 4 – Understand the importance of antioxidants supplements and regularly take them.
STEP 5 – Understand the importance of superfoods and incorporate them in your diet.
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