Annapolis Integrative Medicine
1819 Bay Ridge Avenue
Suite 180
Annapolis, MD 21403
More Complementary & Integrative Healthcare Articles
Reversing The Slow Decline: Restoring Vitality And Health
When many people reach their 40s-60s they just don’t feel well and are looking for some way to restore their health and vitality.
While generally not seriously ill they complain of fatigue, poor sleep, achiness, loss of motivation, and other issues that they think are inevitable at their age. Vitality and aliveness are possible at almost any age.
The approach and conversation with these patients is rather simple. Their current state of health may simply be the result of the interface of their genetic makeup and their lifestyle, meaning their diet, amount of exercise, sleep, stress, toxicity, and other factors. And while you cannot alter someone’s genetics, it has been demonstrated that altering lifestyle factors can absolutely alter how genes function and express themselves.
The first thing to deal with is sleep. When people (more often women) enter their 40s their sleep patterns begin to deteriorate. Without adequate deep sleep the body cannot heal and restore itself, and chronic fatigue, aches and discomfort ensue.
The next thing to address is hormonal function. Some think that hormones decline with age. A more empowering view is that we age as our hormones decline. Addressing thyroid and adrenal issues, as well as testosterone, estrogen, and growth hormone levels as appropriate can make an enormous difference in restoring health and vitality.
Next is digestive function. Often people complain of chronic issues such as heartburn, abdominal pain, constipation and diarrhea. As with the other issues above, until these issues are fixed (and they often can be with just a little intervention) real health is not possible. We have to look at chronic infections, malabsorption, and inflammation and fix these. Real health requires a healthy gut.
Last and not least we must look at diet and exercise. Eating in a way that promotes health and well being requires realizing that what I call the “nutritional environment” does not have our best interests in mind…just look at rising rates of diabetes and obesity. To be well you must fix all nutritional deficiencies. And finally regular exercise is indispensable…if you want your body to work you have to take care of your body.
While this may sound complex it really is not, and there is nothing better than feeling alive and well.
