Page 49 - ELITE PLUS MAGAZINE Vol 3

Healthy ageing involves two main factors: to support, enhance or at least maintain the essential physical functions, and to reduce the risk of age-related ailments. To keep our body running smoothly, some recommendations should be taken into account. Firstly, for older people a lower food intake and other ageing-related changes increase the likelihood of nutritional deficiencies that are uncommon in the young. There is less issue with macronutrients such as proteins, fats and carbohydrates, since we normally take these in sufficient amounts every day. Inadequacies are more likely for micronutrients, which cover vitamins and minerals. The focus is on vitamin A for better immunity, vitamin C for antioxidant activity and members of the vitamin B group such as B6, B12 and folate that are essential for neurological and cognitive functions of the brain. Iron is important for anaemia prevention and calcium isultimately indispensable for tooth and bone strength and to help prevent osteoporosis, a major malady in the elderly.Interestingly, just taking multi- vitamins may result in a younger “biological age”. As we know, the lifespan of normal, healthy cells is linked to the so-called telomerase shortening mechanism, which limits cells to a fixed number of divisions. Therefore the telomere length may be a marker of biological ageing. Multivitamins can beneficially affect the telomere length via modulation of oxidative stress and chronic inflammation. According to results published in The American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, the telomeres of those who take multivitamins daily may be on average 5.1 per cent longer than of those who don’t.Staying mobile and active is very important for getting the most out of life as you age. Mobility affects how well we can get around; therefore it isThe focus is on vitamin A for better immunity, vitamin C for antioxidant activity and members of the vitamin B group such as B6, B12Elite+ 47