Smoking, like ultraviolet radiation, is known to have an aging effect on human skin. The mechanism by which sunlight ages skin relies on an increase in levels of MMP-1, a protein which degrades collagen in skin. Collagen accounts for about 70 percent of the dry weight of skin and confers many structural characteristics to it such as elasticity. Degradation of collagen results in wrinkled and lined skin.

Christine Lahmann, DiplBiol, Jorg Bergmann, PhD, Graham Harrison, BSc, and Antony Young, PhD published a research letter in the March 24 issue of the British medical journal The Lancet, in which they point to higher levels of MMP-1 as one cause for wrinkled skin in smokers.

The authors originally undertook a study to examine the effects of ultraviolet radiation on MMP-1 levels, but when they measured the concentration of m-RNA, the genetic material used to make MMP-1, as a relative indicator of MMP-1 protein concentration, they found that before any ultraviolet exposure, some subjects had no MMP-1, while in others the protein was readily detectable.

To explain this finding, the authors asked their subjects about their smoking histories and correlated their replies with the MMP-1 measurements. The study included 14 smokers (mean age 30 years) and 19 non-smokers (mean age 27 years). The smokers generally reported having between 10 and 20 cigarettes per day for 3 to 25 years.

The results indicate a strong positive association between smoking and MMP-1 concentrations. Before any ultraviolet radiation, 42 percent of non-smokers had detectable levels of MMP-1, whereas the authors detected MMP-1 in 86 percent of the smokers. Levels of other proteins which protect collagen from degradation did not increase with smoking.

“This is just one more reason not to smoke,” said Gilbert Ross, MD, Medical Director at the American Council on Science and Health. “While facial wrinkling is not as devastating a problem as lung cancer or heart disease, the two deadliest results of smoking, for young people especially the prospect of premature aging could be a real deterrent to taking up this addictive habit.”

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There are a million details in any large corporate move — from selling a house and packing the belongings to finding a whole new support system and leaving all the old friends and family behind. I knew my friend would need her husband’s help. And I know them both well enough to know she would get it.

We all have heard a million times that marriage is about cooperation, but making that real on a day-to-day basis is the essence of a successful marriage, as it would be in any partnership.

When my husband was building a new business, I made sure I had medical benefits for the family so he didn’t have to worry about them. When I had to go off to Hungary to research a book I was writing, he took care of the kids and the house for three weeks. My mother lives across the driveway from us because years ago, my husband suggested my parents come to live with us so we could help them through their old age.

The pattern repeats itself over and over again. When one friend’s wife took on a high-powered new job, he took over paying the bills, a job she’d done for years. That gave her more time to devote to her new tasks.

Each time spouses help one another in a marriage, they strengthen the bonds of the union, showing by deeds, not just words, that they are “for” each other. Support can come in big and small examples, but it needs to be consistent and it needs to be appreciated on both sides. More importantly, good marriages have an environment where mutual aid is the norm, the underpinning of all undertakings.

When spouses feel this way, kids help to pick up the slack and pitch in for family efforts, too. And this, in turn, teaches children the value of teamwork in personal relationships.

Life has its twists and turns, its changes and challenges. Couples who can face those twists and turns as adventures and shared burdens will triumph in the end. They will forge a successful team where each one’s achievements and sacrifices are appreciated by the other. They will build from strength to strength to form a more perfect union.

Another friend we were with just today was taking pictures of all the “tourist” spots we visited together in Connecticut, so that he could build a picture page on the Internet and send them to his wife, along with his commentary, while she is clear across the country caring for her aging mother for a month. He knew the words and pictures would ease her path and make her smile at the end of a long day of helping her mother come to terms with a growing disability.

He didn’t talk about it as teamwork; he just acted like a team member.

Where do you and I fit in all of this? We live in an open field of infinite possibilities for our lives. As we leave behind old ways of doing things and are faced with the incredible burst of technology in our lives, we are also entering into an extended lifespan. What used to be considered “old age” is now in the prime of life. Yogi Berra was right when he said, “The future ain’t what it used to be.” We have come to accept that life-long learning is the mode for the future. If we can say one thing for sure about the decades following our 40th birthday, we can say they are filled with change — some we can anticipate — some surprise us. The greatest talent we can develop is to become committed to being an “artist of change.” We may be given an outline for our mature years, but we add the color and texture. While some people in our lives may insist we color within the established lines, no one can control the direction of our artistry.
Between the ages of 40 and 55 we can expect to see the results of a metabolic slowdown that began in our 30s. We will also experience, in various ways, our body’s approach to a menopause. After 55, we enter a maze of conditions said to be typical of the older generations. But, these conditions exist only as possibilities, not as our destiny.

Change is natural to life. Being able to embrace the natural changes of our lives does not mean “growing old gracefully” In fact it doesn’t mean growing old at all. Old is a state of mind. Being ageless means being who we are, at this present moment, while challenging the boundaries of our experience with an ageless attitude. The truly creative and courageous artist of life grows into longevity with spirit and grace, and a mite of attitude.

Here are the ABCs of being ageless

A

Attitude

Having an “I am not the average woman” attitude is almost essential in order to face the onslaught of advertising focused on the prevention of aging. To be able to choose whether to cut away our wrinkles, lose our fat through suction, color our hair or use products to prevent others from knowing that we are growing older requires that we know our personal, true reasons for doing so. Low self-esteem is not cured by products and neither is aging. When we use these procedures for healthy reasons, they enhance our living. When we use products or procedures to make up for what we think are our shortcomings, there will always be something else we need to do to be “good enough.” Being aware of the natural changes of our bodies means we embrace them but are not limited by them. These changes include a slower metabolism, which requires us to pay closer attention to what and when we eat. Eating a diet filled with fresh fruit and vegetables and cutting down on fat and sugar will enhance our vitality and well-being. If our energy is not what it was at 20, we can still be involved and active at our new level.

Activity

Aging can also mean bone mass loss, which does not have to lead to weak or broken bones if it is checked by appropriate calcium intake and weight-bearing exercises. Simple things like walking, dancing, gardening jump roping can take the place of joining a gym. If you join a gym, try to find one that focuses on women. The equipment is more our size and the trainers are prepared to work with us to build healthy bodies.

B

Boldness

When we are young, being bold is just part of our learning experience. We are always trying new things because the world is new to us. When we are more experienced, we can sometimes lose our sense of wonder, and our sense of adventure. Change is here to stay. Our world is in a dynamic change mode, and if we are to not feel we are getting too old to keep up we must boldly enter into learning. Taking a class in a subject that interests you, yet is unfamiliar to you is a bold step. Joining a club or group for travel, cultural exchanges, book review, or bird watching is a bold move if you don’t know the other group members. There are many ways to be bold in life.

Balance

There is a fine line between accepting the natural changes of age and using our age as an excuse by claiming our limitations as the result of aging. The most common conditions attributed to aging include lack of energy, memory dysfunction, weight gain, crankiness and lack of participation. Many times these are brought on by unwise choices or by passively accepting that there is nothing we can do about them. By making wise choices in food and exercise, keeping involved with people, volunteering for something we believe in, and by keeping our minds actively exploring new topics and activities, we will maintain a balance between natural aging and the push to move beyond our conditions.

C

Courage

The kind of courage needed to be an Artist of Change is not the same as the courage to face a disaster or a rampaging mob. There is no adrenalin rush in making a decision to refuse a health challenge as permanent, or in joining a new exercise class. The courage of an artist is to step up to each blank canvas and create something new. The courage of an artist of change is to step up to each new day as if it were a blank canvas, letting go of past experiences and asking, “What shall I create today?” The courage to forgive makes a hurting relationship into a blank canvas. The courage to begin a new career turns our workday into a blank canvas. The courage to give up the myths of aging turns every day into a great adventure.

Commitment

True commitment has no chance of failure. True commitment is making and remaking our choices to bring ourselves back to what we truly value. It allows us to return to healthy choices after too many desserts and late-night snacks and return to exercise after something interrupts it. Commitment embraces everything about change in the outer world, while remaining true to the values, virtues and principles that are our compasses.

The potency of herbs can be standardized through specific extraction processes. The quality of homemade herbal remedies depends on the quality of the plants used. Plants must be free from decomposition spots, insect holes, mold, and they must look, smell and feel healthy and vibrant. Dried or freshly picked, flowers, fruit, seeds, leaves, roots and gums, can be used in herbal preparations.

Our family herbal medicine cabinet is lined with small jars of dried herbs and spices, floral waters, herbal vinegar’s, tinctures, tonics, salves, syrups, Bach remedies, and essential oils.

There are many techniques available to start your own Eden Healing Cabinet, and each man will adapt methods using the following information and skills. Once herbs have been grown, harvested and dried, and you read up on the basics on herbal cosmetic and medicinal use, there’s nothing stopping you making rescue remedies for the whole family’s everyday first-aid, and simple health conditions.

Learning to use herbs for health and skin-care is a lifelong process. Yet, it can be very rewarding to be able to successfully treat an illness and learn a preventative way to live, as you become more familiar making and using different herbal preparations. The more comfortable you become, the more you’ll know which herbs and other natural resources to keep on hand, season to season. Both your family and personal habits will to some degree dictate what ingredients you need to store.

Sometimes, by treating a particular condition before it has a chance to take hold on your immunity, you can limit the chances of becoming seriously ill. Remember to keep all cooking and medicinal herbs separate, and although it might take a little time to get your supplies together, it will be well worth your efforts to be prepared, since prevention is the key to ageless aging for a lifetime.