"Birthdays are nature's way of telling us to eat more cake." – Edward Morykwas
Over the holidays there were plenty of bad football games. Thank goodness for the commercial breaks. During a few of these diversions, I managed to read some interesting articles about a 2023 Stanford University study on organ aging.
You read that right.
Some of the football bowl games were so bad, the subject of organ aging was actually more exciting.
For me, the old saying "you're only as old as you feel" has a slightly different meaning after this holiday season.
Here’s my non-medical assessment of this study.
Researchers compared protein markers from 11 different organs in healthy and not so healthy particpants. The data revealed signs of organs with "accelerated aging". In other words, among most of the study participants they found at least one organ had more birthdays than it's owner.
Some of the findings were fairly predictable, like an aging heart had a 250% greater chance of heart failure. Or that metabolic disease all but guaranteed accelerated aging in their targeted organs, as in Type 2 Diabetes wreaking havoc on the kidneys.
But since gut health is what we're all about in this space, what could we possibly take away from an organ aging study that remotely applies to your gut?
Glad you asked.
Two of the eleven organs or organ systems measured for advanced aging were the brain and the immune system.
And these two were found to have accelerated aging in a majority of study participants. On the surface, this might prove to be depressing to a normal reader.
Since I'm not a normal reader, let me borrow a phrase from ESPN's College GameDay football personality Lee Corso:
"Not So Fast!"
For optimal physical and mental health, who is the vitally important dance partner in the bi-directional waltz with the brain?
And who has the same home address as 70% of the immune system?
The gut.
When it comes to the brain and immune system, we can we slow the sands through the organ-aging hourglass by properly fueling our gut microbiome.
Enlisting the support of the trillions of gut bacteria to produce short chain fatty acids for a strong intestinal barrier, we can fortify our immune system and take a few candles off the organ-aging birthday cake.
And these same bacteria can ensure efficient signaling to the brain via the gut-brain axis so we can maximize physical and mental health.
As we transition from holiday mode back to nurturing a healthy gut microbiome, these researchers remind us that the list of benefits from feeding your gut with plenty of fermented foods and fiber, daily movement, good sleep, and stress management, continues to grow.
Happy New Year!
Jeff
