Some say that young people waste their youth. Too busy figuring life out they hardly take any time to enjoy it. Fortunately, lifespans have doubled over the past century and we can currently begin life at fifty and have another go at youth, because of medical analysis and scientific progress. Health consciousness, acceptable diet and exercise, can make the later years of life a pleasant experience. Dietary principles play an particularly vital role in this regard. They compensate the physiological changes of ageing by offering us better odds of achieving our genetically determined lifespans.
The advancing years experience a complicated interplay of changes affecting the mind, body, and the environment. Alterations in organ systems and cellular function will usually predispose to malnutrition and a host of chronic sicknesses (Servan 1999). Some of these issues will be attributed to the decrease in the overall protein content and are in themselves preventable with appropriate attention to the protein content of the diet.
A decrease in protein turnover, like that seen in aging, has far reaching effects (Chernoff 2004). Important organ systems like the heart and lungs slow down, becoming incapable of additional exertion. Neural processes like thought, planning and cognition also are affected. Similarly the immune system's abilityto deal with infections becomes weaked and delayed in its response time. Wound healing and repair, which requires a continuing supply of amino acids, is additionally compromised.
Free radical species also become tougher to deal with within the aging process. These highly reactive molecules are produced by cells under stress. Since free radicals are able to hasten chain reactions, additionally have the ability to damage cell membranes. They have been implicated in many different disease processes from infection, heart attacks and cancer. The truth is the inability to handle free radicals is what's to blame for aging. However it is believed, as of recently, that possessing a higher protein diet is a technique to attenuate a lot of of these issues(Chernoff 2004).
In the elderly obtaining proteins through only the eating plan will typically lead to a failure to fulfill all the added requirements that is included with getting older. A protein supplement is usually needed to make sure simple digestion, rapid absorption and assimilation. The protein supplement should also be of fine quality and contain all of the essential amino acids in adequate quantity. Such a supplement will adequately provide essential amino acids irrespective of the gut’s ability to assimilate them. Such a protein supplement will probably be able to handle the increased protein demand and malnutrition seen within the elderly, restoring the ability to make and repair tissues. A good protein supplement also offers other significant benefits in the elderly that often go unrecognized.
In having a high protein diet, one raises the thermogenics, or fat burning processes, in the body. The body spends more energy to assimilate protein than carbohydrates or fats. This energy is typically derived from the adipose tissue, therefore burning fat in exchange for protein (Bloomgarden 2004). Then if the protein supplement has whey in it, it can inhibit cholesterol absorption in the gut, reducing the risk of obesity and cardiac disease (Nagaoka 1996). Protein supplements that have casein will form a clot within the gut, thereby slowing down intestinal motility (Boirie et al. 1997) and giving the gut enough time to soak up all of the amino acids from a meal. For the main reason that ageing has a substantial bearing within the digestion process, comprehending these properties of protein are helpful.
In supplements that use both of these, whey and casein, the advantages to the body are multiplied. Both casein and whey protein have a group of substances known as kinins that may lower blood pressure by relaxing the blood vessels (FitzGerald, 2004.). Both proteins enhance the immune system through many mechanisms (Ha and Zemel, 2003). Whey also carries the protein lactoferrin which is effective in binding iron and depriving many micro-organisms of a growth stimulus. Colon cancer is prevented by protein supplements that contain lactoferrin (whey) as a result of their affect on free iron, which allows the formation of free radicals, one of the factors responsible for colon cancer.
Whey additionally has other antioxidants to offer. It's abundant with cysteine, a precursor of Glutathione that is potent at mopping up free radicals (Counous, 2000). In the later years of life an improved antioxidant capability can manage processes that induce several cancers and aging. Whey protein is additionally known to enhance memory as it promotes the synthesis of a neurotransmitter, serotonin that's involved in cognition and thought (Markus 2002). Milk basic protein, a element of whey, has the ability to stimulate proliferation and differentiation of bone forming cells, plus suppress bone sesorption as found in vitro and animal studies, that can defend against weak bones, or osteoporosis, especially within the post-menopausal women (Toba 2000).
Therefore there is in depth medical literature in support of a high protein, casein and whey supplements within the elderly population. These studies have also did not document any major adverse effects with long-term intake of such supplements. Such a supplement will go far in making the later years of life more productive and fruitful.
REFERENCES
1. Arnal MA, Mosoni L, Boirie Y, et al (1999). Protein pulse feeding improves protein retention in elderly women. Am J Clin Nutr; 69: 1202-1208.
2. Bloomgarden ZT, Diet and Diabetes. Diabetes Care, volume 27, number 11, 2004
3. Boirie Y, Dangin, M, Gachon P, Vasson, M.P et al. (1997) Slow and fast dietary proteins differently modulate postprandial protein accretion. Proclamations of National Academy of Sciences, 94: 14930-14935.
4. Bounous G (2000). Whey protein concentrates (WPC) and glutathione modulation in cancer treatment. Anticancer Res 20:4785-4792.
5. Campbell WW, Crim MC, Dallal GE, Young VR and Evans WJ(1994).Increased protein requirements in elderly people: new data and retrospective reassessments. American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, Vol 60, 501-509.
6. Chernoff R (2004). Protein and Older Adults. Journal of the American College of Nutrition, Vol. 23, 627S-630S.
7. Counous, G (2000). Whey protein concentrates (WPC) and glutathione modulation in cancer treatment. Anticancer Research, 20: 4785-4792
8. FitzGerald R J, Murray B A, and. Walsh D J (2004). Hypotensive Peptides from Milk Proteins. J. Nutr. 134: 980S-988S.
9. Ha, E. and Zemel, M.B (2003). Functional properties of whey, whey components, and essential amino acids: mechanisms underlying health benefits for active people. Journal of Nutritional Biochemistry, 14: 251-258.
10. Hernanz A., Ferna´ndez-Vivancos E., Montiel (2000). Changes in the intracellular homocysteine and glutathione content associated with aging. Life Sci, 67: 1317-1324.
11. Kent KD, Harper WJ, Bomser JA (2003). Effect of whey protein isolate on intracellular glutathione and oxidant-induced cell death in human prostate epithelial cells. Toxicol in Vitro, 17(1):27-33.
12. Lands LC, Grey VL, Smountas AA (1999). Effect of supplementation with a cysteine donor on muscular performance. J Appl Physiol 87:1381-1385.
13. MacKay D. Miller AL, 2003. Nutritional support for wound healing. Altern Med Rev; 8:359-377
14. Markus C R, Olivier B, and Haan E (2002). Whey protein rich in a -lactalbumin increases the ratio of plasma tryptophan to the sum of the other large neutral amino acids and improves cognitive performance in stress-vulnerable subjects. Am J Clin Nutr, 75:1051-6.
15. Meyyazhagan S,. Palmer R.M (2002). Nutritional requirements with aging. Prevention of disease. Clin Geriatr Med, 18: 557-576.
16. Nagaoka S (1996). Studies on regulation of cholesterol metabolism induced by dietary food constituents or xenobiotics. J Jpn Soc Nutr Food Sci, 49:303-313.
17. Servan R P, Sanchez-Vilar O, de Villar G N (1999). Geriatric nutrition. Nutr Hosp, 14 Suppl 2:32S-42S.
18. Shah NP (2000). Effects of milk-derived bioactives: an overview. Br J Nutr, 84:S3-S10.
19. Thompson JS, Robbins J, Cooper JK (1987). Nutrition and immune function in the geriatric population. Clin Geriatr Med, 3(2):309-17.
20. Toba Y, Takada Y, Yamamura J, et al (2000). Milk basic protein: a novel protective function of milk against osteoporosis. Bone 27:403-408.
21. Walzem RL, Dillard CJ, German JB (2002). Whey components: millennia of evolution create functionalities for mammalian nutrition: what we know and what we may be overlooking. Crit Rev Food Sci Nutr, 42:353-375.
22. Weinberg ED 1996. The role of iron in cancer. Eur J Cancer Prev, 5:19-36.
Author Resource:
About Protica Research
Founded in 2001, Protica Research (Protica, Inc.) is a nutritional research firm specializing in the development of capsulized foods (dense nutrition in compact liquid and food forms). Protica manufactures Profect (www.profect.com), IsoMetric, Pediagro, Fruitasia and more than 100 other brands in its GMP-certified, 250,000 square foot facility. One area of specialty is the manufacturing of Medicare-approved, whey protein bullets for weight loss surgery patients.
You can learn more about Protica at www.protica.com - Copyright - Protica Research
![[Valid RSS feed]](http://www.look4articles.com/images/icon_Rss.png "XML Feed For RSS"){kind=icon}
Category Rss Feed
Print This Article
Add To Favorites
![[Valid RSS feed]](http://www.look4articles.com/images/rss.jpg "XML Feed For RSS")