Anyone who wants to be fit and healthy in old age should exercise enough. Age researcher Sven Voelpel explains what is also important.
30 percent of the aging process is genetically determined, "the tendency is falling", explains age researcher Professor Sven Voelpel (46) in an interview with the news agency spot on news. As the author of "The Fountain of Youth Formula", he knows which aspects have a positive effect on aging and which have a negative effect. For example, not only the place of residence has an influence on epigenetics, but also diet and exercise. The most amazing thing in Voelpel's eyes, however, is "that our genes themselves can be changed by our own way of thinking and our attitude to life".
Contacts as "actively operated health care"
The aging researcher specifies: Often people are not even aware of "the importance our social network has for our health". "A stable, social network that supports and, if necessary, provides help is one of the most important factors influencing our health," says Voelpel. The feeling of belonging to a group alone has an effect "like an active preventive healthcare" and has a rejuvenating effect.
Voelpel's statement is supported by a 2011 study by the University of Chicago. "Loneliness makes you sick and illness drives our aging process forward", summarizes the age researcher their results. "Those who feel alone, for example, recover less in their sleep than people who feel they are part of a community."
Do Facebook friendships also count?
"Friendships that we maintain in real life make us happier and healthier," says Voelpel. "The time we spend in front of the cell phone, tablet or laptop to virtually communicate with our friends prevents us from moving and does not necessarily help us to live healthier." Although purely virtual friendships are good for social interaction, according to the age researcher, social networks "have a negative effect on our well-being" and can lead to dependency. He therefore advises "cultivating face-to-face interactions with people". These social contacts are the most valuable.
(No) sport is murder?
Voelpel has a clear answer to the question of which sports keep you young. He says: "Essentially, every sport in which you exercise and have joy or friends keeps us young." Accordingly, team sports are ideal, "because you experience something together, achieve common goals and personal interaction is always in the foreground". In addition, the age researcher and author is a great fan of dancing. Sport serves "everything you need to stay happy and healthy: stamina, coordination, movement, social interaction, regularity and, above all, concentration on doing."
People who do not do any sport "in principle age the fastest," says Voelpel. Why it is like that? Since the cardiovascular system and the joints are not adequately supplied with blood, they do not receive any minerals. "That means our body is not supplied with enough oxygen and ages faster."
Find the golden mean
However, you shouldn't overdo it with the sport. "Because every movement that we make too strong or too overdosed is bad for our body." If the metabolism is driven up for too long, the body experiences oxidative stress, explains Voelpel. "This in turn favors the aging process." The secret of the fountain of youth formula is "the golden mean". The expert speaks of physical activity with a focus on the quality of movement. This is "the more important the older we get," said Voelpel.