Most of us have surrendered to the fact that we will age. For example, we have accepted the fact that we will end up with health problems and will need care and assistance in our twilight years.

But we do not need to have a defeatist attitude about ageing. Instead, we can do something about it.

At a recent talk by Mark JS Miller, the Global Ambassador of AstaReal®, he pointed out that we can choose to remain healthy and active all the way throughout our life.

Photo courtesy of Facebook/Astavita Singapore.

The talk, which was an informal session that had been held at Tanjong Pagar, had attracted people of all ages and from all walks of life.

The AstaReal® Group strongly believes in preventing lifestyle disease and premature signs of ageing, by deploying resources to develop breakthrough solutions that contribute to healthy ageing and in the reversal of chronic health conditions.

Miller said, “Your HealthSpan is the portion of your life that is characterised by good health. It is one thing to aim for a good, long life, but it is just as important to have a HealthSpan as close as possible to that lifespan. You want to stay healthy all the way through your life, rather than having lots of health issues towards the end of your life.”

This is known as Active Ageing and active agers have good mobility, skin health and vision in their twilight years. They also have no chronic disease or disabilities and they regularly take part in sports too.

Some active agers include

• Chan Meng Hui – Aged 87, he is a Singaporean marathoner who took up running when he was 55, and recently completed his 101st marathon at the Standard Chartered Singapore Marathon in the year 2015. He is still running today, and is also managing his own courier business
  Ed Whitlock – Aged 86 when he passed away from prostate cancer, Ed was an English-Born Canadian marathoner who ran a sub-three hour marathon at age 70 and a sub-four hour marathon at age 85.
• Wang DeShun – Now aged 82, he is dubbed as China’s sexiest grandpa and sports a chiselled physique, hipster beard and a youthful guise, thanks to an intensive fitness regime of up to four hours of daily exercise.

Photo courtesy of Facebook/Astavita Singapore.

According to Miller, the longevity of our lifespan is partially determined by our genome or DNA, which cannot be changed. But on the other hand though, the EpiGenome can be altered, in order to prolong our HealthSpan.

While the genome is likened to the hardware of a computer, the epigenome is like the software, that is, what you choose to run on the computer. 

So as you continue to run software, it may get corrupted over time and you may get viruses that bring down the efficiency of the software. The same applies for our body. For example, in the body, viruses such as Hepatitis C can corrupt the EpiGenome.

Nutrition can also influence the EpiGenome too, according to Miller. To illustrate this, he cited an example of the Queen Bee and Worker Bees. 

They Queen Bee and Worker Bees are in fact clones of each other, but the Queen Bee is fed a special nutrient called Royal Jelly and this alone transforms her into the Queen Bee. Her form and function also changes when she eats Royal Jelly.

Said Miller, “If you remove the Royal Jelly from the Queen Bee’s diet, she will revert back into a worker. Her whole function is based on her nutrition.”

So likewise, what we eat too, can also affect our HealthSpan.

But Miller admitted that in a foodie paradise such as Singapore, where cheap, yet good and delicious food such as Chicken Rice, Laksa, Kaya Toast and Mee Rebus are easily available, it may be hard to eat healthily. 

So in order to improve your HealthSpan, Miller pointed out that getting a regular dose of Astaxanthin can be helpful.

This is because a major factor that drives healthy ageing is chronic inflammation, which is dictated by the corruption of the NF-kB EpiGenome.

NF-kB is a protein complex that forms part of our immune system, where it helps to stimulate antibodies as well as playing an important role in memory and stress responses.

However, NF-kB is also present in the hypothalamus of our brain, where it helps to control ageing – the larger our production of NF-kB by our body, the faster we will age.

But taking Astaxanthin can reduce the body’s production of NF-kB, thus helping to regulate our body system, so that we will age slower – and thus have a better quality of life when we are older.

It does this by increasing the body’s production of Nfr2, which is another protein where, if activated by the body, can result in longevity and an increased quality of life.

The most potent free radicals scavenger known to man, Astaxanthin is an antioxidant that is said to be 110 times stronger than Vitamin E, 560 times stronger than Green Tea catchechins and 6,000 time stronger than Vitamin C. 

In line with improving our quality of life at an older age, some of the common benefits of Astaxanthin include:

Photo courtesy of Facebook/Astavita Singapore.

• Improving brain health – Reduces the risk of developing neurodegenerative disorders such as Alzheimer’s or Parkinson’s Disease by preserving our cognitive function.
• Protecting the heart – Lowers our risk of heart inflammation and oxidative stress, which are both key causes of heart disease 
• Keeping our skin youthful – Reduces wrinkles and age spots and improves skin texture and moisture of the skin
• Enhancing workout – Stimulates the body’s enzymes to produce more mitochondria, which enhances our physical performance, limits muscle damage and promotes recovery after intense workouts.
• Improving strength and mobility – In an older person, Astaxanthin can arrest loss of muscle mass, strength and mobility, avoid frailty and keep the muscular system strong.
• Supporting healthy vision – Can protect retinal cells from oxidative damage and reduces symptoms of eye fatigue. It may also help prevent cataract and other eye conditions too.

While Miller pointed out that this superfood can be found in what we eat, the amount that we are getting from our diet alone, is far from being sufficient.

Some common foods that Astaxanthin are found in, include lobster, salmon, crab, krill, algae and shrimp – and this is the reason why these foods are all red in colour.

Said Miller, “The salmon could never make the epic journey to its spawning grounds every season if it were not for the powerful effects of Astaxanthin present in its body.” 

However in order to get enough Astaxanthin in our diet, we will need to consume 12 servings of salmon every day. And one serving is equivalent to a 100g fillet for salmon.

Said Miller, “While Astaxanthin is perfectly functional, it is impossible to get enough of it, in our daily diet.”

So instead, Miller recommends that everyone should take one Astaxanthin supplement on a daily basis. By consuming just one 6mg serving of Astaxanthin tablets – which is produced by the AstaReal® Group, you are getting 12 servings of salmon in one go.

Photo courtesy of Facebook/Astavita Singapore.

Miller stressed though, that the effects of Astaxanthin are not immediate and they happen over time. It may be slow and you might not feel its effects at the beginning, but as the years go by, you will definitely feel it working its magic in your body.

To share my own personal experience, I have been taking Astaxanthin, in the form of the AstaReal® AstaVita® Sports supplements – for more than a year now, and during that period, I have definitely felt the corresponding improvements in my body.

The pioneers in the mass production of Astxanthin for the market, the source of Astaxanthin for AstaReal® is the Haematococcus pluviailis MicroAlgae, thanks to the development of highly advanced and one-of-a-kind technology that they have – which makes use of specially designed photobioreactors to cultivate the MicroAlgae and then extract the Astaxanthin from it. 

And thanks to the Astaxanthin, since I have been consuming the AstaVita® Sports supplements as an ambassador of the company, my rate of recovery from my intensive marathon and triathlon training regime has improved since taking these supplements.

So this means that I have been able to clock more mileage as well as do harder workouts, while staying injury-free as well as illness-free at the same time.

As well, taking AstaVita® Sports had also helped me to set brand new personal best timings for the 10km and the 21.1km as well as the 42.195km distances over the last year. Thanks to AstaVita® Sports, I have been able to achieve running times that I previously thought had been beyond my grasp.

In addition to taking AstaVita® Sports though, I try and eat a healthy diet for the most part, though I do admit to having a sweet tooth as well as a desire to indulge in not-so-healthy fare, every now and again.

This is not a problem because Astaxanthin supplements, according to Miller, can indeed be consumed together with a normal Singaporean diet- that may also include regular consumption of Omega-3 fatty acids from foods such as salmon.

Photo courtesy of Facebook/Astavita Singapore.

Said Miller, “While Omega-3 and Astaxanthin influence inflammation and cardiovascular health, the way that they function is not the same. So they are complementary to each other and can both be taken and included in a healthy diet. It is good to take both.”

Besides the AstaVita® Sports supplements that I have been taking, AstaReal® also produces a range of other Astaxanthin infused products, such as their Astavita® Healthy Living Antioxidants for everyday health, as well as Astarism cream that is applied externally on the skin in order to maintain its youthful appeal. 

Photo courtesy of Facebook/Astavita Singapore.

And for those animal lovers too, your dogs can also gain the benefits of Astaxanthin – through the AstaMate supplements that are produced especially for dogs.

If you wish to try out the AstaReal® AstaVita® Sports supplements, or any of the other AstaReal® Astaxantin supplements for that matter, to see how it works for you, simply head on to the website, https://astavita.sg, and use the promo code “prislovestorun” in order to get 20 PER CENT off your order. 

There is no minimum order required, and free shipping to any address in Singapore, is included too.