Everyone wants to be younger and healthier. But, as we grow older, there will be a lot of changes that happen to our body, for example, becoming frail, turning gray hairs, and progressive decay of dermis. Sadly, aging is a process that all living things need to go through once in a lifetime. Although it is not avoidable but we can actually delay the process by adopting a healthy lifestyle.
Aging is caused by both intrinsic and extrinsic factors. Intrinsic factor is an inevitable physiological process that occurs naturally as a result of increased age, gender, ethnicity and hormones. While extrinsic factor involved with external environment factors such as poor nutrition, air pollution, smoking, sun exposure and list goes on. These factors will increase the release of free radicals to our body which can degrade our cell structure and increase the enzyme activities that lead to breakdown of collagen. Therefore, prevention is needed to slow down the aging process.
Here are 9 tips to slow down aging process:
1. Opt whole grain product
- Low glycemic index product will not cause a spike blood sugar level
- Prevent damage to skin cells and soothes skin irritation
- Oat, barley, brown rice, quinoa, whole meal bread
2. Adequate protein intake
- For normal people, the minimum requirement of protein intake is 0.8 gram/kg body weight
- To build and repair our muscles and tissues.
3. Introduce omega-3 fatty acids into your diet
- To reduce oxidation process and maintain skin moisture.
- Mackerel, salmon, herring, tuna, anchovy, chia seed oil, flaxseed oil, walnut, canola oil
4. Increase intake of food rich in vitamin C and vitamin E
- To improve skin elasticity, wrinkles and skin tone
- Guava, mango, kiwi, avocado, leafy vegetable
5. Eat more carotenoid-rich food
- A powerful antioxidant help neutralizing the free-radical in our body
- Help stimulate the regeneration of epidermal to soften the skin
- Carrot, pumpkin, mango, papaya, watermelon, tomato
6. Limit food high in fat, salt and sugar
- These addictive substances put extra stress on your body and speed up the aging process.
7. Manage stress level
- Body will release high amount of cortisol that can break down the skin’s collagen and elastin when it is under stress
- Try yoga or listen relaxing music
8. Be physical active
- Minimum of 150 min/week of physical exercise
- Do brisk-walk, jogging, cycling and strengthening exercise
9. Have a good sleep quality
- The recommended amount of sleep is between 7-9 hours/day.
- Help to reduce the stress level and improve our mood.
