The Miracle of Regenerative Medicine

How to Naturally Reverse the Aging Process

Elisa Lottor, Ph.D., HMD

• Editorial: Healing Arts Press
• Año: 2017
• ISBN:
  9781620556047
• Categoría: Medicina
• Categoría: Salud general

Turn on the body's self-healing abilities, prevent illness before it starts, and reverse the aging process • Explains how to activate the body's regenerative abilities and combat inflammation through diet, supplements, detox, herbs, exercise, energy medicine, and mindfulness • Examines the science of epigenetics and the potential of stem cell therapies for regeneration of joints and organs as well as for healing the telomeres of our DNA • Reveals the importance of hormone balance and sleep as a core regenerative therapy Harnessing the advances of the new paradigm of medicine--which focuses on the regenerative abilities of the body rather than symptom management--Elisa Lottor, Ph.D., HMD, explains how each of us can turn on the body's self-healing abilities, prevent illness before it starts, and reverse the aging process to live longer, healthier, and happier lives. Beginning with a focus on the foods we eat, the author reveals how many diseases and symptoms of aging are the result of inflammation in the body, caused by poor diet and a lack of crucial nutrients. She explains the top foods to avoid, such as refined sugar, and the best nutrient-rich foods to include, along with easy and delicious recipes. Showing how regenerative medicine treats the roots of aging and disease, preventing them before they start, she details the regenerative properties of the liver complex, explaining the best ways to detox, and reveals how to restore optimal microbe balance in your gut. Dr. Lottor explores the regenerative properties of adaptogens, herbs, and nutriceuticals, the unobtrusive healing practices of energy medicine, the importance of hormone balance, and the concept of living water. She also underscores sleep as a core regenerative therapy. Looking at the most cutting-edge research in the rapidly emerging field of regenerative medicine, Dr. Lottor examines the potential of stem cell therapies for regeneration of joints and organs as well as for lengthening our DNA's telomeres, the shrinkage of which is now considered a chief cause of aging. She also looks at the science of gene expression--epigenetics--and how DNA can be used as both a health predictor and a tool for preventing inherited diseases. Including a comprehensive resource section for finding products and practitioners, Dr. Lottor offers each of us the necessary tools and information to reverse aging and participate in your own wellness.

PART 1

What’s the Matter?

1

INFLAMMATION

A good doctor endeavors to help the body repair itself, to awaken the healer within.

J. E. BLOCK, M.D.

Barbara sat in her doctor’s office while she rattled off a litany of complaints. She had arthritis in her hands and knees, and they ached all the time, her dentist just told her she had gingivitis, and now, she had just been diagnosed with gastritis. She was only forty-five. She wanted to know what was going on. You might be thinking, she’s so young to have so many health problems, but people a lot younger have even more serious and chronic problems. “My body seems to be falling apart,” she said. If truth be told, she looked a lot older than forty-five. Her diet and lifestyle were finally catching up, even before she reached menopause.

Your body’s ability to heal is greater than anyone has permitted you to believe.

Of course, her doctor prescribed pain pills for her and told her to take Aleve, but he failed to inform her what the underlying factor contributing to all her health problems was: it was inflammation. Words that end in itis mean inflammation, like laryngitis, the inflammation of the larynx, or conjunctivitis, the inflammation of the membrane that covers the eye (known as conjunctiva). She had arthritis, the inflammation of the joints; gingivitis, the inflammation of the gums; and gastritis, the inflammation of the stomach. Her body was telling her that something was very wrong.

If you can put out the fire of inflammation, many, if not most, health problems would dissipate.

Chronic inflammation is a newly identified cause of many health problems from diabetes to heart disease, which is the number one killer in Western countries. In fact, if you can put out the fire of inflammation that is going on in the body, many, if not most, health problems would dissipate. If this is the case, then why are we living with so many diseases in our lives?

When Barbara called to make an appointment, I asked her to bring in a food journal of everything she had consumed for the past week and write down the type and duration of exercise and how many hours she slept, and the quality of her sleep. When she came for her first visit, I could tell by the extra weight she carried and where she carried it (around her waist), that she not only did not exercise, but also ate a diet of refined foods, sodas, and a little too much alcohol. She said, “I have a couple of glasses of wine when I come home to unwind, and sometimes I drink more than I know is good for me.” This was evident from her blotchy complexion, dull hair with split ends, and bloodshot eyes. I could also tell that she was suffering from adrenal exhaustion because of the dark circles under her eyes. I later found out that she was a single mother and was working full time while having to cook, clean, and take care of her children. It was obviously taking its toll. Additionally, she was getting about six hours of sleep per night.

Inflammation is the mother of all diseases.

After reading her food and exercise journal, I was not surprised to find out that my suspicion was right. She did not exercise and consumed a diet of sugar and refined foods. I explained to her that both her diet and sedentary lifestyle, along with a lack of sufficient sleep and increased stress were causing all her health issues. She was not a happy camper. I presented several suggestions that could help quell her inflammation and improve her overall health. These included changing her diet, finding stress-management techniques other than alcohol, and getting a half hour of exercise on a daily basis. Also, I encouraged her to get enough sleep and take anti-inflammatory supplements. The prevalence of drinking in women has increased incrementally with their responsibilities of having to “do it all.” Had she continued with her current lifestyle, she would not only be shortening her life-span, but she would also be creating the perfect storm for chronic disease.

Scientists have searched for and recently found out why some people live to be over one hundred, while being physically active, happy, and healthy. A team of experts in Tokyo researched which processes in the body may be responsible for not only successful aging but also for longevity. They have identified the common denominator, and that is inflammation. In this chapter, we will learn to not only identify the signs of chronic inflammation, but also what to do to keep it at bay.

Professor Thomas von Zglinicki from Newcastle University Institute for Ageing in the United Kingdom found that, “Centenarians and super-centenarians seem to age slower and they can ward off disease much longer than the general population.”

The level of inflammation predicts successful aging.

Inflammation increases with age, but those people who were successful in keeping inflammation under control invariably maintained good cognition, independence, and had extended years.

This study showed for the first time that the level of inflammation predicts successful aging. It is hoped that this understanding of extreme longevity can translate to the general population, helping them achieve an extended healthy life-span. Dr. Yasumichi Arai, Head of Tokyo Oldest Old Survey on Total Health said, “Our results suggest that mitigating chronic inflammation might help people to age more slowly.”

Severe inflammation is an aspect of many aging-related diseases and the lifelong accumulation of molecular damage resulting from chronic inflammation has been suggested as a major contributor to the process of aging.

WHAT IS INFLAMMATION?

The concept of inflammation is probably one of the most exciting revelations to come to light in recent years because it points to the common denominator behind practically every disease.

What most health care practitioners neglect to inform you is that you can reduce inflammation in your body, thereby eliminating one of the major causes of disease and premature aging. According to the Centers for Disease Control, seven out of every ten deaths are attributed to cancer, heart disease, or diabetes. What do these all have in common? They are all linked to inflammation!

But what exactly is inflammation? We all have heard the term inflammation before, but we don’t know exactly what it is and how big an effect it can have on our lives. At some point, we have all encountered inflammation. If you’ve sprained an ankle or bumped your head, you may have noticed swelling at the point where the injury happened. This is inflammation. It is the body’s way of telling us that there is something wrong and that it is protecting itself from further damage by essentially padding the affected area. Acute inflammation also helps in the healing process by removing dead cells and helping in the regeneration of new cells.

However, there is a huge difference between acute and chronic inflammation. When inflammation becomes chronic, it is no longer a healthy immune response for healing the body; instead it becomes the root cause of a disease. Practically every chronic disease has inflammation as the underlying cause. Many common everyday health issues experienced by people are the result of chronic inflammation. A well-known form of inflammation is arthritis. “My arthritis is acting up” and “Arthritis just comes with age,” can commonly be heard from the general population. You may think of this as an old people’s ailment, but even younger people are showing symptoms of this inflammation much earlier in life than normal.

You might be wondering what you can do to treat or prevent such incidents from occurring. What if you could change the course of inflammation by simply making a few changes to your lifestyle? Well, you can! We are going to take a look at some small ways that can yield big results. But first let’s talk about what causes inflammation.

THE CAUSES OF INFLAMMATION

How can we alleviate inflammation now that we know what it is? Knowing where inflammation comes from can help you to understand some simple and achievable ways to rid your body of this painful and possibly crippling condition.

When it comes to your health, ignorance is not bliss.

Most of our health problems are in one way or another attributed to inflammation. For example, due to the fact that they end with -itis, we know that arthritis, bursitis, diverticulitis, and other -itis problems connect directly to inflammation. But did you also know that other diseases, such as heart disease and cancers, can directly result from inflammation? Knowing this, we need to find the causes of inflammation so that we can stop chronic health problems before they begin. So, what causes inflammation and why do we need to know about it?

Here are some factors that can contribute to chronic inflammation:

• Being obese or overweight: having a waist size of over 35 inches if you’re a woman, and over 40 inches if you’re a man
• Eating a poor diet, high in sugar (even fructose) and refined carbohydrates and unhealthy oils
• A genetic predisposition or history of heart disease
• Prediabetes or diabetes
• A sedentary lifestyle, sitting too much
• Smoking tobacco, drinking too much alcohol (more than 4 oz. per day)
• Having a chronic infection or autoimmune disease
• Chronic stress

Inflammation has direct links to our diet and lifestyle. As we look at Barbara’s situation mentioned in the introduction, we notice that much of the inflammation relates to how she lives her life. She eats processed foods that contain large amounts of sugars, does not pursue regular physical activity, and has chronic, unremitting stress as well as lack of sufficient sleep. Breaking down her situation, we can see many causes of inflammation before we dig even deeper.

Let’s take a look at some of the common factors that lead to inflammation that we can take control of right now.

Diet

When it comes down to it, the standard Western diet is largely responsible for inflammation. One hundred years ago, you wouldn’t hear half the health complaints that we hear of today. In fact, even thirty years ago, when I began my practice, I never encountered patients with so many chronic diseases. What is one of the key differences between how they lived then and how we live now? People ate healthier and they got regular physical activity.

The standard Western diet is largely responsible for inflammation.

The story of Dr. Terry Wahls has some fascinating ties to how a diet can help, if not cure, illness. She was diagnosed with multiple sclerosis and was essentially crippled. While she followed the advice and treatments that were common to MS, she was still feeling its crippling effects. One day, she decided that she was going to put her research to the test. If she could change her diet to support her mitochondria and myelin sheaths, she felt she could change the course of her disease.

By taking on a paleo, whole-foods diet, she was able to reverse the effects of the disease and actually cure it. How can this be? She basically eliminated all of the foods that are linked to inflammation! The processed and refined foods that are common in the Western diet were purged from her diet, and she was able to reverse the effects of a crippling disease!

This goes to show that diet can play a huge role in how our bodies react to disease. If we can support our health by eliminating foods that can cause disease, we might actually be able to cure and prevent some of the most disabling diseases.

In the next chapter, I am going to go more into depth about the elements of our modern diet, but for now, I want to emphasize that what we eat is a common factor linked to inflammation. By eating refined and processed foods and foods that are high in sugar, we are not giving our bodies the nutrients that they need for growth, repair, and regeneration.

By making a few changes to our diet, we can make a huge change to our overall health. Later on in this chapter, I will present a few suggestions on how you can change your diet in small ways in order to avoid chronic inflammation.

Lifestyle

Another key factor in chronic inflammation is our modern lifestyle. Instead of walking, we drive places. In Southern California where I live, people often joke that they drive to their mailboxes. The effort it takes to do tasks today is much less than it was before technology came around. People were used to moving before gadgets that promoted ease came along.

Just because we have made our lives easier doesn’t give us an excuse to stop moving. By finding opportunities to move and be active, we are using the calories our diet provides and allowing our joints to move more efficiently, controlling cortisol and other inflammatory processes in the body.

Inactivity, combined with a diet high in processed foods can lead to weight gain and inflammation. In fact, obesity is a problem we are now seeing even in children. A new term has been coined called diabesity to refer to a metabolic dysfunction that invo...