Let’s Get Personal- How Long Are Your Telomeres?

            A new discovery finds out how to keep your cells from aging.  It all has to do with the length of your telomeres.  Telomeres are the ends of the strands of DNA which protect our genetic data.  Telomeres make it possible for our chromosomes to divide and not fray, stick together or lose small amounts of genetic material.  Telomeres have been likened to the plastic tips on shoelaces because they protect the end from deterioration. 

            When a cell divides and copies the DNA, the strands of DNA get snipped to enable the copying process.  It is the telomeres that get snipped since they do not contain any important information. Therefore, the more important parts of the DNA are protected.   The cells age can be determined by the length of the telomeres and can also tell how many more times it will replicate.  When a cell stops replicating it begins to stop functioning or dies.

            In an article in the New York Times Magazines section on January 31, 2010 by Gretchen Reynolds she writes that the good news is that researchers have noticed that the length of telomeres in physically active middle-aged (50’s) people were significantly longer than sedentary individuals in the same age group and very close in length to a physically active younger-aged (20’s) group.

            So do you need any more reason to begin a serious exercise program?  We now know that exercise at the molecular level has an anti-aging effect.  Whatever your reason is for not exercising, your chiropractor can help you.  If pain is preventing you from beginning a workout regime, than it is time to call our office for an evaluation.  Instead of treating the pain, we will look for the cause of the problem and work on correcting it.  If you are not sure of how to safely start exercising, give us a call and we will tailor a specific program for you.

            Chiropractic care is concerned with the structure and function of the body.  If the spine and core (support muscles) are not in proper alignment or the muscles are weak and not offering proper support, you begin to wear out and over-stress the joints of the body.  This leads to pain, more weakness and compensation of other areas that are not designed to handle the added stress.

            The cycle continues resulting in avoidance of exercise due to pain.  Chiropractic will be able to correct many problems that you might be suffering from and we will recommend the best exercise program for you.  There are plenty of good reasons to exercise, but as Ms. Reynolds points out in her column- the effect that regular activity may have on cellular aging could turn out to be the most profound.