Dr Vivian will answer your questions on skin care and ageing.

Did you know that your real age could be significantly different from the number of Birthdays you’ve had? A 20 year old could have 60 year old cells and vice versa.

Real Age also known as Biological age is the age your body really is. It is influenced by your Lifestyle choices such as smoking, excessive alcohol consumption and recreational drug abuse. Other factors include genetics, medical history and environmental stressors such as pollution and sun exposure. What you eat, how much exercise and sleep you get and how you manage stress also greatly influence real age. In times of stress, the real age can be a whopping 32 years older than your calendar age. Having friends and companions helps relieve stress. Your Chronological or Calendar Age is measured in years, months, and days from the date you were born.

There are 190 factors that influence aging and 149 of these can be changed. You can’t change inherited genes but their activity can be altered. Your cells can be 2 years younger if you quit smoking for 5 months. Eating antioxidant rich foods on a daily basis reduces the risk of Cancer. Walking 30 minutes a day reduces the risk of Colon Cancer
Simple Steps towards Reducing your Real Age:
1.  Take 30 minute walks every day
2.  Taking Vitamins C, E, Calcium, Vitamin D, Folic Acid and Vitamin B6 can reduce real age by 6 years
3.  Cultivate Friendships
4.  Avoid aging foods like refined sugar and saturated fat and detoxify your body periodically
5.  Quit smoking – Smoking ages you and makes your real age 8 years older
6.  Know your Blood Pressure – A person with Low Blood Pressure (115/75 mmHg) is up to 25 years younger than a person with High Blood Pressure (160/90 mmHg)
7.  Reduce Stress – Building social networks and stress reduction strategies can erase 30 of the extra 32 years that stress can add to your age
8.  Flossing and Brushing teeth daily can reduce real age by 6.4 years
9.  Taking 2 x 20 minute walks a day can make real age nearly 5 years younger
10.  Wearing your seatbelt and driving within 10km/hr of the speed limit makes you 3.4 years younger
11.  Fill up on Fibre – Eating 25g of fibre a day can make you 2.5 years younger
12.  Monitor your Health – People who are proactive about seeking high quality medical care and managing chronic conditions such as diabetes and hypertension, have a real age 12 years younger than their peers who don’t
13.  Become a Lifelong learner – Intellectual stimulation makes you 2.5 years younger
14. Laugh a Lot – As they say, laughter is the best medicine. Laughter reduces stress and strengthens the immune system making you 8 years younger.
15. Avoid foods that contain refined sugar, simple sugars like glucose and dextrose, Saturated fats, Trans fats (Partially hydrogenated vegetable oils), Syrups masquerading sugar such as rice, corn or malt syrup. Also avoid any grain that is not 100% Wholegrain.

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Twitter: @derma_care Web: www.doctorviv.com