At a fundamental level, biological aging is defined as a progressive decline in the function of an organism’s cells, ultimately resulting in senescence. Despite very strong scientific research, a clear molecular mechanism of action for aging has remained elusive.

Although it is generally recognized that aging is associated with the accumulation of cellular damage—for example, owing to the production of oxidative radicals—there remains a lack of consensus in the field about the extent to which the accumulation of different types of damage drives the aging process. Still, research indicates contributing factors include:

• DNA damage and oxidative stress: The accumulation of macromolecular damage has long been thought to underlie aging at a fundamental level.
• Cancer and senescence: cancer and aging might be two sides of the same coin. Some cancer pathways also lead to cellular senescence and apoptosis, which might ultimately accelerate age-related decline in tissue and organ function.
• Depletion of stem cells: The stem-cell depletion in mitotically active tissues results in many of the phenotypes associated with aging.

Genetics & Cognitive Decline
Many people have genes that make them susceptible to certain diseases, but they don’t develop those diseases as expected even with age. Something has protected them from expression of the disease state. Scientists so far have identified several hundred genes and constructed a robust database. Billions of dollars have been invested to identify longevity-related genes, but the search is still ongoing.

Age-related cognitive decline, which is also known as non-pathological cognitive aging, is among the most feared aspects of growing old. Cognitive decline differs in extent between individuals and also between different stages in the lifecycle.

Every day many older people outperform young people, at least on some cognitive tasks, and others of the same age demonstrate a similar cognitive performance to younger peers. This is an important question to be resolved by aging researchers. It is unclear how much cognitive decline is purely the result of aging of an otherwise healthy brain. A better understanding of the aging brain is considered key to an improved quality of life in countries where people live longer such as Sweden, Iceland, South Korea, Luxembourg, etc.

Determinants of Healthy Aging
EuroHealthNet, a non-profit partnership of organizations, agencies, and statutory bodies working on public heath and disease prevention, has defined healthy aging as “the process of optimizing opportunities for physical, social, and mental health to enable older people to take an active part in society without discrimination and to enjoy an independent, good quality of life.”

Major determinants to aging in health include access to healthcare, physical environment (rural/urban), transportation and infrastructure, employment and working conditions, housing, education, social issues, family life, etc. (see Figure 1).

There are many other lifestyle factors such as physical activity, nutrition, smoking, alcohol use, stress, and medications that also affect healthy aging.

Active Living: What Older People Can Do
Healthy aging doesn’t mean just stopping or halting the biological aging process. Multifactorial and multidisciplinary programs that use a combination of strategies to target symptoms of aging seem to be more effective than singular approaches.

Another important aspect of health management is health literacy, the ability of a person to understand and use information related to their health, which can be affected by many factors including education, socioeconomic status, and cognitive decline.

Healthy and intelligent eating is important for all stages of life, including older age. Overweight and obesity are significant public health problems across the population, including among older people, and these are expected to worsen in coming years.

The use of dietary guidelines, education resources, nutrition and exercise programs, awareness of food safety, and dietary supplementation have all been shown to be effective strategies for enabling healthier eating.

Regular physical activity is essential for maintaining abilities and independence as people age, and also helps maintain or improve brain health. Tobacco-free living, reducing harmful alcohol and drug use, improving mental health, preventing family violence and elder abuse, improving sexual health, family and community participation are directly associated with healthy aging.
As Ingmar Bergman once said, “Aging is like climbing a mountain, you get out of breath but you have a magnificent view.”

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Dilip Ghosh, PhD, FACN
nutriConnect

Dilip Ghosh, PhD, FACN, is director of nutriConnect, based in Sydney, Australia. He is also professionally involved with Soho Flordis International, the University of Western Sydney, Australia, and is an Honorary Ambassador with the Global Harmonization Initiative (GHI). Dr. Ghosh received his PhD in biomedical science from University of Calcutta, India. He has been involved in drug-development (both synthetic and natural) and functional food research and development both in academic and industry domains. Dr. Ghosh has published more than 70 papers in peer-reviewed journals, and he has authored three recent books: “Biotechnology in Functional Foods and Nutraceuticals,” “Innovation in Healthy and Functional Foods,” and “Clinical Perspective of Functional Foods and Nutraceuticals” under CRC Press. His next book, “Pharmaceuticals to Nutraceuticals: A Shift in Disease Prevention,” is in press. He can be reached at dilipghosh@nutriconnect.com.au; www.nutriconnect.com.au.