This is a “sponsored post.” ChromaDex compensated FOF with an advertising sponsorship to write it. Regardless, we only recommend products or services that we believe will be helpful for our readers. All insights and expressed opinions are our own. —Geri Brin

At first I wasn’t worried when I started feeling lethargic a few months ago. Although I’m usually filled with great energy, an occasional off day usually means I should slow down and relax. But, this sluggish feeling just wouldn’t go away, and I became anxious. We know our bodies best, so when something doesn’t feel right, it may be time to see a doctor.

Then I had an aha moment: As I’ve aged my signature boundless energy had been steadily ebbing, until I began taking a daily supplement two years ago that promised to rejuvenate the energy production in my cells.  Could this blah feeling have returned because I’d stopped taking it?  I have a stash of the vitamin in my cellar, but hadn’t gone down the two flights for a new bottle after I ran out of my supply in the kitchen drawer.  I’m not a big fan of the cellar!

So off I went to get a couple of bottles and immediately took two capsules. Here’s the exciting news:  Within a few days, my energy had returned full force. I swear. And it hasn’t left me since because I won’t ever again let a day pass without popping the vitamin into my mouth.  While many claims in the booming nutritional supplement market seem downright absurd, I am living proof that this supplement, called TRU NIAGEN, actually can reduce the effects of aging on our cells, starting with decreased energy.  

When I first heard about Tru Niagen a few years ago, I  wanted to learn more, so I arranged for an interview with Dr. Charles Brenner, the Stanford-educated PhD behind the discovery, and asked him to explain it in non-scientific terms. If a highly educated scientist hoped to teach me anything, he had to make it simple. Biology was my worst subject in high school!

Discovering The Pathway To Cell Longevity

In a nutshell, Dr. Brenner uncovered the pathway between a molecule called nicotinamide riboside (NR), and nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide (NAD), which he argues is the single most important molecule in every single cell of our bodies. “We all absolutely need NAD,” Dr. Brenner said emphatically. “NR is a form of vitamin B3 that helps our cells to produce NAD. NAD performs a number of critical functions: It enables our cells to convert the fats, proteins and carbohydrates we eat into the energy we need to stay in top shape. It also activates sirtuin genes, which regulate cellular aging and the chemical and biological processes that help us maintain healthy and fit lives.,” Dr. Brenner told me.

>> Click here to try TRU NIAGEN®!

Unfortunately, our level of NAD substantially declines as our bodies slow down with age. Aging is the biggest risk factor for many of the diseases that kill us. Doing cardio and weight-bearing exercises all week, consuming a diet of nutritious whole foods, getting adequate sleep, and staying away from smoking and drinking are all important. “But cells damaged by the inevitable stresses of life, such as aging, look for ways to replenish their NAD, which helps keep them running smoothly. If we take an NR supplement, we provide our bodies with a proven source of NAD.”

A Science-Backed Brand With Integrity

There’s more good news: Dr. Brenner is the Chief Scientific Advisor behind TRU NIAGEN®, the only NR supplement directly from ChromaDex, the worldwide patent-holder and innovator behind it. When you take TRU NIAGEN, you’re getting the real benefits of Dr. Brenner’s important discovery, without the side effects of some other supplements.

TRU NIAGEN® makes me feel wonderful— from overall feelings of well-being to consistent energy. I’ll never again postpone a trip to my cellar when I run out. Continued use of Tru Niagen sustainably elevates NAD levels, supporting my desire to age the best I can!

to bring back your vitality today.

Sponsored by AboutNAD.com

If you’d first met Leo shortly before he died, you’d never guess he was 102. He still walked with a spring in his step, carried heavy bags of groceries, and was constantly on the move. What’s more, Leo never ever napped during the day. And, his cheeks were as pinchably round and rosy as ever!

Not so with Rosalie, 30 years younger. Her favorite activity is sitting in front of the TV, for hours on end, where she’ll often fall asleep, sometimes for long stretches. When Rosalie agrees to take a walk around the neighborhood with her husband, her pace is excruciatingly slow and cautious, and she starts to tire after a couple of blocks. She’s thinner, too, even though she isn’t dieting, and she’s definitely paler.

Why does one person, a centenarian at that, act so much younger than someone who’s actually young enough to be his daughter? Although Rosalie hasn’t been diagnosed with a life-threatening disease, she has a medical condition called “frailty syndrome.” It’s real, it’s disheartening, and it’s debilitating, and each and every one of us needs to do everything we can to prevent or delay it.

If you have at least three of these five symptoms, you’re considered frail: 1) Decreased muscle strength 2) A feeling of fatigue 3) Slow walking speed 4) Low levels of activity, and 5) Unintentional loss of at least 10 pounds within the past year. Our grandparents may have believed frailty was an inevitability of aging, but it’s absolutely not! Frailty syndrome now is classified as a medical condition, and, as our population ages, scientists are working hard to find ways to reverse it!

“Frailty syndrome is linked to more deaths, more hospitalizations that end up with patients in nursing homes, more falls, more combinations of chronic diseases, and more complications and side effects from prescribed medications,” said Dr. Peter M. Abadir, a noted gerontologist and clinician with the esteemed Johns Hopkins Bayview Medical Center in Baltimore, MD.

GIVING FRAILTY THE GOOD FIGHT

Dr. Linda Fried, an internist, first defined frailty syndrome in 2001 and warned that it puts us at risk of “very bad outcomes.” But what makes some of us frail when we’re only in our 50s, while others never become frail, like Leo? Our genetics and environment certainly play important roles, and even if we don’t have control over either, we can control two other factors that we’ve been hearing about for years—how we exercise and what we eat—according to Dr. Abadir. “Different studies, here and in Europe, have proven again and again that 30 minutes of moderate exercise, six days a week, is linked to a 40 percent mortality risk reduction. You can gain five years in a lifetime with moderate exercise,” Dr. Abadir stressed.

This doesn’t mean you have to jog around the block countless times, until you’re about to pass out. Moderate exercise can mean walking the dog, or yourself, at a lively pace, or making a concerted effort to walk up and down the stairs in your house throughout the day. Weight-bearing and balancing exercises are also critical for maintaining your core strength, so you minimize your risk for falls. “Common sense stays the common sense when it comes to the science of aging,” Dr. Abadir added.

Scientists have discovered that fasting stresses our body at the cellular level far more than we usually do, at least when it comes to nutrition. By overeating, we don’t give our cells a chance to naturally and properly regenerate and rejuvenate, so we’re stuck with loads of damaged, poorly performing cells that can cause all kinds of havoc on our bodies, and contribute to age-related problems.

WHAT HAPPENS TO OUR CELLS AS WE AGE?

“Our bodies are in continuous decline and repair processes, which can be linked to most of the diseases of aging,” said Dr. Abadir, whose research is focused on mitochondria. “These are small organelles inside every cell of our bodies that convert oxygen into the energy (fuel) needed for cellular repair,” he explained. Mitochondria power the muscles and tissues of the body and are responsible for creating 90 percent of the energy needed to sustain life and support organ function. When mitochondria stop working properly, organs start to fail and cause us to get sick with diseases like heart failure and diabetes, and even die.

Although we lose mitochondria as we age, researchers have discovered that when older adults (their average age was 67 in one study) regularly exercise, the amount of their mitochondria increases significantly. This, in turn, increases energy and endurance!

Our cells also hold an important molecule called NAD (nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide), which works within our mitochondria to perform critical functions, such as enabling our cells to convert the fats, proteins, and carbohydrates we eat into the energy we need to stay in top shape. NAD also kicks our “longevity genes” into gear, which regulate cellular aging and the chemical and biological processes that help us maintain healthy and fit lives.

Unfortunately, our level of NAD also substantially declines as our bodies slow down with age. Doing cardio and weight-bearing exercises six times a week, consuming a diet of nutritious whole foods, getting adequate sleep, and staying away from smoking and drinking all are essential. The inevitable physiological stresses of life, however, can lead to poorly functioning mitochondria and the decline of our NAD levels.

“I couldn’t fake it anymore. It was getting harder and harder to follow my friend’s conversations in noisy restaurants, and I’d constantly ask my husband to repeat dialogue when we watched our favorite shows,” Sharon said.

If you’re part of the Boomer generation, like Sharon, that grooved to loud music in the 60s and 70s, chances are that your hearing isn’t what it used to be. Fortunately, you can hear clearly again, without having to spend a king’s ransom, now that one company has figured out how to bring women a sophisticated, petite and stylish hearing aid for price of prescription eyeglasses.

But beware of countless brands who are marketing nothing more than sound amplifiers, which are designed for those with normal hearing who want to boost sounds at certain times, say in a noisy restaurant. Amplifiers simply make all sounds louder, while a hearing aid can differentiate between sounds and amplify them based on the characteristics of the sound. Hearing aids also are custom programmed to make speech easier to hear and decipher, and they’re fitted to your ear so they feel comfortable.  Amplifiers don’t offer any of these benefits.

In a nutshell, amplifiers are not substitutes for hearing aids.

The EVA-lution!

EVA by ihear are appealingly small and absolutely first-rate hearing aids made exclusively for women, who lose more hearing in the lower and mid frequencies than men. They’re a fraction of the cost of other premium devices–only $399 each–because the average person with typical hearing loss patterns can buy them directly online from iHear. EVA comes with an assortment of standard and vented tips in various sizes, so you can could choose those that fit most comfortably in your ears.  And, they’re adjustable, so you can turn them down or up.   (more…)