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Astaxanthin Benefits: Antioxidant for Healthy Skin and More

If you keep up with the latest news in natural health and health-promoting ingredients, you have probably heard of astaxanthin. This carotenoid has been called a “super-antioxidant” for its protective role against a number of different health concerns. New studies suggest that it may be a powerful supplement for healthy aging as well.

What Is Astaxanthin?

Astaxanthin is a member of the carotenoid family, natural pigments present in healthy foods. Many carotenoids act as antioxidants, protecting against the oxidative stress that comes from cell metabolism and pollutants in the environment. Astaxanthin is present in pink or red seafood including shrimp, crab, and even some kinds of krill and kelp. Because human bodies cannot make this compound and Americans do not eat a diet rich in these foods, many can benefit from an astaxanthin supplement.

Astaxanthin Benefits

Astaxanthin has been shown in research to have many health benefits. Because it possesses antioxidant properties, it may help to promote cellular health, heart health and protect against some of the neurodegenerative conditions associated with aging. It also has been found in preliminary trials to help with diverse conditions from male fertility concerns to gastric ulcers. It can even promote cognitive health and boost energy. However, until recent studies, the healthy-aging effects of this phytonutrient were unknown.

Supporting Healthy Aging from the Inside Out

There is a growing body of research suggesting that astaxanthin can have a significant impact on wrinkles and other signs of skin aging. In one recent study, women took astaxanthin supplements and also applied a cream containing the antioxidant to their faces. After eight weeks, they showed significant improvement in wrinkles, crow’s feet, skin texture, moisture and the general condition of skin cells. Another study showed similar results from taking the supplement alone for six weeks. These results are present in both men and women.

Astaxanthin benefits skin on a cellular level as well. People who take supplements of this antioxidant nutrient while also applying it to their skin topically have more moisture and better condition in their corneocytes, or superficial skin cells.

A Super-Antioxidant to the Rescue!

Every day, our bodies are exposed to oxygen radicals. We need oxygen to live, but it can be destructive to our cells at the same. Antioxidants reverse the damage of oxygen radicals, preventing long-term changes to our cells and our DNA. Research has found astaxanthin to be one of the most potent antioxidant ingredients available. It has several benefits over other antioxidants. For example, it is lipid soluble, which means it can cross cell membranes and act inside cells, where antioxidants are most needed. In addition, it has anti-inflammatory properties, promoting healthy cellular inflammatory processes. Inflammation is one of the largest contributors to premature aging and related health concerns.

This little supplement appears to have huge effects on whole-body health. It is important to talk to your doctor or health care practitioner about supplements, particularly if you are already taking other medication. However, the positive effects of taking astaxanthin are so great that it will likely benefit many people, particularly those who wish to support healthy aging.

Chronotherapy Offers New Hope for Rheumatoid Arthritis

Mar 02 by Ewcopywriting Leave a Comment

Rheumatoid arthritis is a debilitating autoimmune disease that can lead to joint pain and a host of other health issues. As with many autoimmune diseases, patients often have to try many therapies before finding one that works. Unfortunately, some never get total relief of debilitating symptoms. However, a new paper on chronotherapy and rheumatoid arthritis suggests that carefully timing medications may lead to more relief of symptoms as well as fewer side effects.

The Circadian Rhythm of Autoimmune Disease

The immune system runs on a distinctive circadian rhythm, as well as seasonal and other rhythms, so it is no surprise that autoimmune disease does so as well. Immune system tends to peak while we are sleeping, allowing the body to detect and repair inflammation when it can be quickly repaired. Glucocorticoids, which suppress immune activity, as well as performing many other essential tasks, peak early in the day. There are also many other hormones that affect the immune system and show a 24-hour cycle.

Because of the circadian rhythm involved in immune activities, it is no surprise that many autoimmune diseases show a 24-hour cycle. In rheumatoid arthritis, also known as RA, pain and stiffness in joints are worse in the morning, usually immediately upon waking. This timing of symptoms is so predictable that it is used to differentiate RA from other joint diseases in diagnosis.

A Day with RA

People with rheumatoid arthritis develop inflamed nodules on their joints that can make movement painful. Over time, these nodules can degrade healthy joints so that they don’t function well. In general, people with rheumatoid arthritis wake with joint pain, swelling, and stiffness. This is likely to due to an increase in IL-6, an important immune mediator of inflammation. The glucocorticoid peak in the morning gradually decreases symptoms, which are generally manageable throughout the day.

The intense morning pain associated with rheumatoid arthritis begins early enough in the morning that it can interfere with sleep, leaving people who have this disease fatigued. While people with RA are more likely to use pain medication in the morning, other medications such as immune suppressants generally are not given at any particular time. A new paper suggests that this may be a mistake.

Chronotherapy and Rheumatoid Arthritis

How can chronotherapy be used to help rheumatoid arthritis and other autoimmune diseases? Researchers suggest that taking a delayed release glucocorticoid at night that prevents the immune system from reaching as high of a nighttime peak, may alleviate much of the morning stiffness and other symptoms. People with RA commonly take glucocorticoids but often do so in the morning. Levels are often too low at night to have a large effect at the time when they are most needed.

This approach may also be helpful with methotrexate, monoclonal antibodies and other medications used to treat RA. These drugs target very specific cellular processes. Taking them when they are most likely to have an impact could mean a more effective treatment, as well as lower dosing and fewer side effects.

New and sophisticated drugs are coming out every day for autoimmune diseases such as rheumatoid arthritis, offering hope to people who desperately need answers. Understanding the circadian and seasonal rhythms of autoimmune diseases will lead to more effective treatments, which ultimately means more quality of life for those who desperately seek it.

Chronobiology of the Skin: The 24-Hour Cycle of Your Largest Organ

Feb 27 by Ewcopywriting Leave a Comment

All life on earth and each organ in our body follow circadian rhythms that revolve around the 24-hour light/dark cycle. Scientists are discovering more and more about the unique circadian rhythm of the skin.

You are probably not aware that your skin follows its own circadian rhythm, but this cycle determines every action of your skin cells from the growth of new tissue to damage repair. Understanding the chronobiology of the skin can help you to better take care of this important organ, as well as also protect against some of the damage that occurs with aging.

The 24-Hour Cycle of Skin Cells

During the day, your skin is exposed to a variety of damaging elements from the environment. Radiation from normal sunlight can cause the formation of free radicals, and even DNA damage. The wind, pollution and other harsh environmental factors also damage delicate skin cells. Our skin would quickly become aged and dysfunctional if we didn’t have cell cycles that allow for repair and rejuvenation.

Most of the repair and growth of our skin cells occurs at night. This makes sense because nighttime is when skin is least likely to be exposed to damaging environmental stressors. Throughout most of human history, people spent the night asleep in dark areas where further damage was unlikely to occur. At night, DNA repair agents begin fixing the DNA damage from the day, while toxic elements and waste products are removed. Cells begin to replicate, undergoing mitosis to generate new cells to replace those that are dead or damaged. Blood and lymph flow to the skin also increases at this time so cells have the nutrient supply that they need to complete these essential processes. Skin cells are most susceptible to damage when they are actively repairing themselves.

When the Chronobiology of the Skin Is Disturbed

When the natural circadian rhythm of the skin is disturbed, your skin cannot recover as effectively from daytime damage. Waste products can build up and cause further damage to the skin cells. New cells are not made as rapidly, giving skin a duller and older appearance. If DNA repair does not occur, the mutations and damage over time can lead to health concerns like skin cancer. The negative effects gradually build up over time, leading to noticeable damage over a lifetime. It does not take a lot to disturb the circadian rhythm of skin cells; exposure to elements and pollutants at night or simply not getting adequate sleep can interfere with these vital processes.

Preventing Aging by Working With Internal Clocks

Understanding the chronobiology of your skin can allow you to prevent damage and also to develop skincare routines that complement your internal clock. Dermatologists recommend that people use external skin products that prevent damage during the day, such as sunscreen and gentle moisturizers. At night, external skin products that assist in damage repair, such as retinol and alpha and beta hydroxy acids, will have more effects. In addition, certain lifestyle changes and the addition of a chronobiology-based dietary supplement that promotes skin health can help your skin to rejuvenate itself. Getting high-quality sleep at night consistently allows more stable circadian rhythms. Preventing nighttime exposure to toxins, such as cigarette smoke and weather, protects skin at a time when it is most prone to damage.

Our skin is our largest organ, protecting our bodies from the elements and performing essential activities such as synthesizing vitamins. Understanding the chronobiology of the skin will allow people to enjoy a healthier, more youthful appearance and to prevent health problems that are caused by accumulated damage.

Circadian Rhythm Disorders: Health Consequences and Treatments

Feb 25 by Ewcopywriting Leave a Comment

What is life like when you cannot sleep well? People with circadian rhythm disorders know all too well. These types of sleep disorders can affect every aspect of a person’s life and even have a crucial effect on the risk for serious diseases such as heart disease and cancer.

Circadian Rhythm Disorders: More Than Insomnia

While nearly everyone will suffer from insomnia at some point in their life, circadian rhythm disorders are more serious and more difficult to treat. In these disorders, the patient’s body is not releasing hormones for sleep, wakefulness and other daily activities at the right time. The result is that people can feel tired when they are supposed to be working, or they are wide awake when it is time to sleep. This can lead to fatigue, depression and a variety of health effects.

The mechanism of these disorders is generally not well known, but researchers have identified several genes behind circadian rhythm disorders. In a healthy person, the suprachiasmatic nucleus of the hypothalamus processes information such as light levels and temperature. Hormones are released to make the person sleepy, more awake, hungry, or whatever is needed at that time in the day. In a person with these disorders, these hormones are released at the wrong time, in the wrong amounts, or not at all.

Types of Circadian Rhythm Disorders

There are multiple types of circadian rhythm disorders, each requiring different treatments and a unique approach. The two most common, shift work disorder and jet lag, are a result of a person’s lifestyle conflicting with their circadian rhythm. In shift work disorder, people who work nights or other odd hours begin to have trouble falling asleep or staying awake when needed because they do not sleep and wake at “normal” times. In jet lag disorder, a person who travels to a new time zone may have physical effects such as fatigue and memory loss due to the shift in environmental cues such as light.

There are circadian sleep disorders that are not caused by the environment as well. Delayed phase sleep disorder is common in teens and young adults. In this disorder, the timing of the circadian rhythm is shifted so that people cannot go to sleep until very late at night. If they cannot also sleep late, they will suffer the effects of insomnia and fatigue. Advanced phase sleep disorder is just the opposite. In this sleep disorder usually seen in the elderly, people feel sleepy very early in the evening and wake up early in the morning. There are even non-24-hour sleep-wake disorders in which the internal clock is not set to the normal 24 hours.

Treating Circadian Rhythm Disorders

Circadian sleep disorders can make you tired, overemotional and even disrupt your thinking. In addition, they can increase your risk of developing serious diseases as you age. However, there are many approaches to treating these disorders. Many people can get a better night’s sleep by taking a melatonin supplement. Because melatonin is the hormone released to make people sleepy, taking this supplement can help people who have trouble falling asleep when it is time. Bright light therapy during the day also has been found to be helpful. Certain wavelengths of light tell your brain that it is daytime, which encourages making wakefulness hormones.

People who have circadian rhythm disorders were once considered lazy or even mentally ill. However, modern medicine recognizes these disorders as a physical disease with a variety of successful treatments. Getting treatment for a circadian rhythm disorder allows many people to reclaim high energy and good overall health.

Night Shift Work Linked to Increased Risk of Heart Disease

Feb 20 by Ewcopywriting Leave a Comment

Night shift work can make you very tired and interfere with your sleep cycles. Alarmingly, a growing body of research suggests that it can also contribute to heart disease.

Anyone who has ever performed night shift work knows that it can have immense effects on your schedule as well as your general feelings of well-being. When you work the night shift, it can be difficult to maintain a schedule, get adequate sleep and avoid feeling fatigued all the time. Sleeping at odd hours, especially during the day, is a challenge for many. The result is fatigue, fuzzy thinking and other complaints. However, the effects of night shift work are not a mere inconvenience. Not only can working nights mess with your sleep and energy, but it can affect your cardiovascular health as well.

How Does Night Shift Work Affect Your Heart?

The Nurses’ Health Study has been following a huge population of nurses(more than 100,000 people) for several decades. One surprising discovery is that people who work the night shift or are on-call at night have an increased risk of mortality by 11 percent. In addition, these workers are between 19 and 23 percent more likely to die of cardiovascular illness. The increased incidence of heart disease and cardiovascular-related death is present even when other variables are the same.

The Physiology of Night Shifts and Heart Disease

Medical researchers have identified a few ways that night shift work can contribute to heart disease. One study found that even a short-term disruption of a person’s natural circadian rhythm can lead to higher blood pressure and increased inflammation, both of which are important risk factors for heart disease.

Another study looked the effect of working irregular hours in health care workers and found that these people have more activity in the sympathetic nervous system. This system is associated with both emotional and physiological stress, the creator of what we call the “fight or flight response.” Health care workers who miss sleep for work have more physiological stress hormones. In addition, they have thickening of the carotid arteries and other signs of developing cardiovascular disease.

Healthcare workers are not the only population where shift work can affect heart health. The CDC and WHO consider shift work a major cause of occupation-related illness due to several studies finding a significant increased risk. Working the night shift is simply not healthy for most people.

New Discoveries, New Approaches

We will always need night shift workers to staff hospitals and in other fields that don’t close down for the night. However, there are ways that knowledge of the link between heart disease and night shift work can be used to improve health. People who work odd hours can be screened earlier and more carefully for cardiovascular problems like high blood pressure to allow early detection and treatment. In addition, melatonin and other supplements may help to prevent cardiovascular disease by helping workers to get adequate rest and maintain a healthy circadian rhythm. Fields where night work is not necessary may consider changing hours so workers can keep a more natural circadian rhythm.

Sleepless nights affect people more than we often realize. New studies are constantly linking surprising diseases with disruptions in the circadian rhythm. Regular sleep of high quality is very important to good health, even if modern life often makes it difficult.

When to Drink Coffee for the Greatest Benefits

Feb 17 by Ewcopywriting Leave a Comment

Knowing when to drink coffee can have a huge effect on your circadian rhythm and other aspects of health. Surprisingly, early morning isn’t the best time.

People all over the world start their day with a cup of coffee or tea. Not only is this a social and cultural habit, but many feel that a caffeinated beverage helps them to wake up more quickly. However, morning may not be the best time to indulge in a cup of joe. A new study finds that drinking coffee in the hours immediately after waking does not have as much impact on energy as drinking it a little later. In fact, waking up with a cup of coffee may even have negative health effects.

Caffeine and Cortisol

In the time immediately before waking, our cortisol levels rise sharply while hormones associated with sleep decline. This helps us to wake quickly and face the challenges of the morning. Our cortisol levels peak between 8 and 9 a.m. before dropping off dramatically.

How does coffee affect this cycle? Caffeine is a stimulant of the central nervous system, which is how it helps people to wake up and feel more energetic. One of the ways it accomplishes this is by increasing production of cortisol and other glucocorticoids. In other words, coffee in the early morning is merely duplicating what your body is already doing on a biochemical basis. In addition, drinking your coffee when cortisol levels are already peaking can lead to unhealthy levels of cortisol. This can create a great deal of physical and emotional stress. Your body may even develop a tolerance more quickly due to the extremely high cortisol levels, making caffeine a less effective stimulant in the long run.

When to Drink Coffee

Researchers suggest that instead of having coffee early in the morning, people should wait until 9:30 to 11:30 in the morning. At this time, natural levels of cortisol are beginning to drop, which can increase fatigue and decrease alertness. If you suffer a mid-morning slump, natural changes related to your circadian rhythm may be the reason. Mid-afternoon is another common time for an energy slump, and also a time when caffeine can be very effective. Saving coffee, tea, and other caffeinated beverages for these times will help to perk you up and ensure that you get the most energy at the time when you most need it.

Exceptions to the Rule

Scientists have identified a few exceptions to the general rule that caffeine early in the morning is not helpful. Because circadian rhythms are dependent on light levels, people who wake up long before dawn may benefit from coffee early in the morning, until natural cortisol has taken over. In addition, people who live in areas with very little natural light may not have as strong of a natural cortisol response in the morning and thus can benefit from coffee. However, for the average person, it’s best to save coffee for a mid-morning and/or afternoon coffee break rather than drinking it immediately after waking.

Caffeine can indeed help you to remain more energetic and alert throughout your day, but it is most effective when taken at the right times. If you suffer from morning fatigue, moving your coffee time a few hours later may help you to get the consistent energy you need.