Most people who are in their 80s have a mitochondrial function that’s also in its 80s. When you get older, your whole body gets older, right down to the cells.
So it’s no surprise that the mitochondria in aging cells don’t function like those of someone in their 30s. What would be surprising is to find an 84-year-old man who has the mitochondrial function of a 34 year old.
Well, that perfectly describes one of my patients. Even though Steve, as I’ll call him, is going to put 85 candles on his next birthday cake, he still has not yet started to age – amazing! What in the world is he doing that could get that kind of result?
I’ve been reporting for years now about the overwhelming evidence that physiological aging starts when the mitochondria start to fail. For many people, this happens in their 30s. For others, it happens later. But, for all of us, it’s going to happen sometime. So, what’s the deal with Steve?
While Steve has been relatively healthy his whole life, his mitochondria were beginning to show signs of aging when I first saw him. That was nine years ago.
At the time, he was disease-free. He was taking a blood pressure pill, and other than the usual wear and tear symptoms that is typical of a man of 76, he felt and functioned great. His intake form said, “I want to improve my general health.” His mitochondrial function was that of the average 48-year-old. In fact, the only thing I could find wrong with him was that his thyroid was slightly off. His thyroid blood tests were perfect. But, as I have reported to you many times before, thyroid blood testing is notoriously unable to identify people with age-related thyroid dysfunction. So, I started him on a low dose of thyroid and gave him an exercise prescription based on his mitochondrial test. But that was not all.
Initial testing showed him to be deficient in growth hormone and testosterone. And to make matters worse, his estrogen levels were sky high. Estrogen is great for women, but high levels are not good for men. They interfere with testosterone, and lead to muscle loss, decreased libido, moodiness, decreased brain function, and “man boobs.” Steve confessed that he was having symptoms like this. I explained to him that although these findings were not at all surprising in a 76-year-old man, the good news is that they can be corrected.
When I checked his heavy metals, he tested out quite high in mercury and moderately high in lead. Besides the usual environmental exposure to mercury, Steve had several “silver” dental fillings. These fillings slowly release mercury into the body even decades after they were placed. I also asked him if he was getting flu shots, because they are also loaded with mercury. Fortunately, he had not fallen into that trap.
The high lead was typical. Virtually everyone his age has levels as high or higher. I had him see a biological dentist to have the mercury fillings exchanged for non-toxic fillings. And, I started him on oral chelation therapy with DMSA. DMSA is an excellent chelator for both lead and mercury.
When he came back the following year for his annual mitochondrial testing, we were both happy to see that he was then testing out like a 43 year old. He had gotten a year older chronologically, but he had gotten five years younger from a functional standpoint. It seemed like he was on a roll. But was he?
The following year his mitochondrial testing had significantly declined to the point that he was now testing like a 57 year old. What happened? He continued to feel great. He had been faithful in working his program, and nothing had changed in his life. Nothing that is except one thing – he had gotten a year older.
Not long ago, I reported on a similar case of a man who had great annual mitochondrial test results until he hit his 67th birthday. That man was me. Both cases serve to illustrate two things.
One, the aging process is not necessarily obvious. It can sneak up on you while you’re feeling great. Often, you don’t even know there’s something wrong until you find it out on mitochondrial testing.
Secondly, time takes its toll. Sooner or later it gets you. Sometimes even only one year can make a significant difference. The only way to stay ahead of it is to monitor mitochondrial function on a regular basis. That way, you can be alerted to any changes long before they cause problems.
The other thing to remember is that depending on what’s going on in your life, your mitochondrial function can change on a dime. Maybe I was just catching him at a bad time. Or maybe things were starting to unravel. The only way we were going to be able to figure it out was with follow up testing the next year. Using the new data, I set up a different interval training program for Steve. And that brings us to the end of this success story.
The last three years, Steve has consistently tested out like a man in his 30s. I still find it amazing that at his age of 84, he is every bit as functional as he has ever been in his life. And, he doesn’t show any signs of stopping! His story is encouraging to all of us who want to live up to my motto – live long and live strong.
I encourage you to be like Steve. Find the closest doctor to you who offers mitochondrial testing, and monitor it on a regular basis. You can find that doctor at www.bioenergytesting.com. If it’s great, then you know that what you’re doing to slow down the clock is working. If it’s not so good, at least you’re alerted early on when you can make the appropriate changes. This should include taking Advanced Mitochondrial Formula to help boost your mitochondrial function.
Yours for better health,
Frank Shallenberger, MD