Gema García Marcos
Updated Saturday, February 24, 2024-01:37
In 1901, life expectancy was around 40 years.
Four decades later, he was almost 70. Today, we dream of crossing the barrier of 100, but, yes, enjoying the healthiest possible longevity, because we not only long to live longer, but we aspire to do it better.
We are facing, as the Spanish scientist Juan Carlos Izpisúa calls it, a 'second revolution' in life expectancy thanks to the advances led by the biomedical community, especially during the last 25 years, which is focusing much of their efforts in the investigation of
an enemy as silent as it is lethal: inflammation
.
Accelerating process of physical fragility (sarcopenia, osteoporosis, etc.) and triggering many of the chronic pathologies associated with aging, such as cardiovascular or neurodegenerative diseases,
the fight against inflammation has become one of the main 'obsessions' of scientists who study the keys to slowing down (stopping?) the advance of our biological clock
.
"Inflammation is behind a wide range of
chronic diseases, responsible for more than half of the deaths in the world associated with heart attack, stroke, cancer, diabetes, chronic kidney disease
, nonalcoholic fatty liver or autoimmune or neurodegenerative diseases," explains Dr. Ángel Durántez, expert in antiaging medicine and technical director of Longevitas.
Before getting into the matter, it is worth clarifying that there are
two types of inflammation
.
The
acute one
, which is punctual and is caused by blows, burns, etc.
and that, normally, we treat with classic anti-inflammatories, such as ibuprofen, and
chronic inflammation
, related to degenerative processes associated with specific pathologies for which there are no treatments.
We are talking about an inflammation that "we do not see, that is there and that we can measure" and that, as Durántez points out, is the trigger of most of our illnesses.
"We know that the main diseases related to the aging process (cardiovascular, neurodegenerative, metabolic, cancer and those of the musculoskeletal system) have a
very high component of inflammation
. Therefore, inflammation, already included in the wheel of aging markers , has already become a target on which to act."
Chronic inflammation, which really worries the champions of the science of longevity, "accelerates aging and can eventually begin to damage healthy cells, tissues and organs, affecting different systems. Over time, all of this, in addition ,
can cause DNA damage, tissue death and irreparable damage
," points out Ilona Calparsoro, CEO of Longevitas.
Also known as chronic systemic inflammation, "its triggering is usually linked to bad habits" and can have very serious consequences for our health.
It is estimated that "more than 90% of all known diseases have a chronic inflammation component. What's more, chronic inflammatory diseases have been recognized as the
most important cause of death in the world today
," he adds.
Protagonist of a chilling cover of 'Time' magazine in which she was called '
the secret killer',
"about
10% of the world's population suffers from chronic inflammation
, a complex biochemical process that goes through different phases."
And the worst of all is that, without realizing it, we 'feed the monster' with our custom of throwing away drugs whenever that inflammation shows its face in the form of pain.
"
When we treat inflammation with classic anti-inflammatories, what we do is block the entire natural process that our body should carry out to deal with it
. These drugs can 'work' if they are used to treat specific inflammation for a short time, but, In the long run, what they do is deactivate the entire natural resolution process, blocking it completely," warns Calparsoro.
But there is still more.
In this scenario, if the inflammation is not resolved appropriately, it can lead to severe tissue damage.
Therefore, the new trend in today's medicine is to resolve inflammation instead of blocking it.
"To carry out this process, the body, which is very wise, has its own tools, the
spms ('specialized pro-resolving lipid mediators'), lipid molecules derived from fatty acids among which resolvins stand out, whose mission is lead the process of resolution of inflammation,
as was found in research published in October 2002 by a team of scientists from Harvard University led by Charles N. Serhan.
How do resolvins work?
"As if they were orchestra conductors,
they direct the operations of repairing damaged tissue caused by inflammation, cleaning out dead cells
and returning them to normal."
The scientific evidence supporting the clinical action of resolvins is overwhelming.
"Since they were discovered in the early 2000s,
1,044 scientific publications have been registered in the United States that support their effectiveness
in pathologies in such diverse areas of medicine, such as cardiology, pulmonology, dentistry or dermatology" .
The bad news is that, due to the passage of time, poorly healed injuries, bad habits or the abuse of drugs such as ibuprofen, among other causes, "
our body loses resolvins
and, therefore, its capacity is diminished." natural way to deal with inflammation.
The good news is that "
science has managed to isolate the precursors of resolvin - drivers of its natural production - in fish oil
and, thanks to scientific advances in food technology, it has been possible to extract these molecules and put them into "in a capsule. There are more than 1,500 papers that support the effectiveness of p-resolvin food supplements, which increase the natural production of resolvins in our body."
More than a decade ago, Dr. Durántez glimpsed the revolution that p-resolvins were going to bring in the fight against inflammation.
"At that time, I was in the middle of the transition from sports medicine to healthy aging and longevity medicine and I thought how interesting that product was for anyone who practices sports. Because the athlete, no matter what level they are, always hurts. something or have some discomfort, due to some inflammatory process. Subsequently, I have been able to see
how important it is also in the area of longevity
, because one of the pillars of healthy aging is the fight against
chronic, silent, sustained inflammation
that "Sometimes it is difficult to explain, since many patients still confuse it with swelling."
In the United States, he emphasizes, "they have been using these resolvin precursors for some years now, especially
in the field of high competition as a way to accelerate and enhance recovery in professional athletes
who suffer from inflammation processes not only as a result of an injury, but also due to the effort of a training session or a competition. Also, in different fields of medicine, such as cardiology, oncology, dermatology or dentistry, because they all have in common the presence of inflammation".
Businessman and advisory partner of Longevitas, Aitor Ocio confesses how much he would have liked to have had this food supplement as an ally during his time as a footballer.
"I would have loved to have used this resolvin precursor during my active years to combat
that inflammation that occurs when the body is pushed to the limit
. I am convinced that it would have
helped me shorten those recovery periods from overloads, dislocations or bruises
that usually occur in contact sports such as football. And even to minimize or reduce the discomfort or pain that, during the last years of my career, I suffered in each match or training session.
Aitor Ocio has already incorporated this new complement to the list of recommendations that Dr. Durántez has given him to continue with his high-performance life beyond the stadiums.
"Beyond my business side, I continue with my high-intensity training.
I am passionate about tennis and I push myself to the limit on the court
. Therefore, I have to take maximum care of my joints, which bring the logical wear and tear of my years as a professional soccer player. "I have several interventions, affected cartilage, etc. and I am convinced that this resolvin precursor is going to help me improve and, of course, slow down all those degenerative processes that may have been triggered," he concludes.