251: The Telomere Effect: Cell Aging, Stress & Mind-Body Practices
Age Less / Live More
Lucas Rockwood
4.8 • 1.1K Ratings
🗓️ 19 April 2017
⏱️ 45 minutes
🧾️ Download transcript
Summary
Science has linked meditation with longevity through the study of telomeres, the chromosomal caps that are an indication of cell health. By mitigating our stress response specifically, research indicates that mindful practices down-regulate our stress response and up-regulate telomerase production, an important protein for the health of these chromosomal caps. What does all that mean? Basically, it means meditation can make you live longer in the future and live healthier right now. On this week's Yoga Talk Show, you'll meet Dr. Elissa Epel, one of the leading researchers on stress, cell aging, and telomeres.
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Listen & Learn:
- How telomeres are the protective caps on the ends of our chromosomes, just like the plastic tip on a shoelace
- How short telomeres release cytokines or die—both of which are very negative
- How chronic inflammation (from cytokines) can contribute or even cause diseases and illnesses
- Why meditation can mitigate stress response and be protective of telomeres
- Why abuse, violence and trauma can literally shorten your life
- Why vagal nerve tone can reduce the stress response
ABOUT OUR GUEST
Elissa Epel is psychologist who studies stress, aging, and obesity. She is the director of UCSF's Aging, Metabolism, and Emotion Center (AME) She consults to the National Institutes of Health on various initiatives related to human behavior and how to change it, and is on the Steering Council of the Mind and Life Institute that supports research on contemplative practices. She has been studying stress and biology for almost 20 years now.
Nutritional Tip of the Week:
- Protein
Links & References from the Show:
- The Telomere Effect Book
- Acute Childhood Experiences Studies (ACE)
- Telomeres Defined
- Telomeres, Lifestyle, Cancer, and Aging
- Shamatha Project
Got Questions?
- Send me a voicemail here: Ask Lucas a Question
- Or write to us: podcast@yogabody.com
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- Leave us a Review on iTunes
Thanks to our sponsor:
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Transcript
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| 0:00.0 | If you're a regular yoga talk show listener, you'll definitely want to get on my email list. |
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| 0:24.8 | information that I think you'll find useful. So go to yoga body.com forward slash |
| 0:28.9 | sign me up to claim your free prize now. I have this really weird recurring problem with |
| 0:34.5 | cramping and it doesn't happen when I'm running or exercising or doing yoga or |
| 0:37.6 | anything like that but it happens when I'm asleep and I'm not sure why but I |
| 0:42.0 | get really bad muscle cramps in my calves specifically and my feet |
| 0:46.4 | flex up and I've checked my magnesium levels I've checked all the obvious stuff I'm |
| 0:49.8 | just not sure really what it is I'm thinking that's probably stress and anxiety related |
| 0:54.0 | as a lot of my challenges seem to be. But one thing that I've found really effective |
| 0:58.5 | is using massage balls. So we have something called Hurt So Good Massage balls and they're |
| 1:03.6 | oversized so they're about the size of a softball but they're firm but giving |
| 1:08.8 | rubber and so it feels very much like the palm of a human hand and it allows you to work really deeply into the soft |
| 1:14.4 | tissues in my case of my calves. I use these a lot on my spine as well but I've been using them |
| 1:19.2 | on my calves to relieve that tension. When I wake up with that muscle cramp, your immediate |
| 1:23.7 | reaction is you grab the tense muscle and you squeeze it. And it acts on a principle |
| 1:28.6 | called audogenic inhibition and what this principle says is that if you have an overly stimulated muscle, |
| 1:36.0 | which that basically means the electrical signals are going crazy, |
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