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Most people focus on how hard they train and overlook how stress inside the body is shaped in the hours around a workout. That internal stress plays a quiet but decisive role in how you recover, how sore you feel, and whether training builds resilience or slowly wears you down. When recovery lags, fatigue accumulates, progress stalls, and motivation drops, even when effort stays high.

At its foundation, exercise stress reflects a balance between demand and support. Intense training pushes muscles to produce energy rapidly, which triggers signals that drive adaptation and improvement. That response is necessary and beneficial in the right dose. Problems emerge when the stress signal overwhelms your body’s ability to respond, leaving you feeling drained rather than stronger. This is where many training plans break down, not from lack of effort but from poor stress management.

One of the most overlooked drivers of this imbalance is what happens before and after you train. Many athletes assume supplements are the solution and try to blunt stress directly. That strategy misses a more powerful lever. Your body responds first to fuel availability and food quality, which shape how stress unfolds and how quickly balance is restored afterward.

The research that follows explains how different food strategies change this internal response to hard training and why timing matters more than pills. The first set of findings shows how fueling before intense exercise protects recovery capacity and sets the stage for consistent progress.

Carbohydrates Blunt Oxidative Stress During Intense Training

A study published in the journal Antioxidants examined whether eating carbohydrate-rich foods or polyphenol-rich foods before resistance-based high-intensity interval training (HIIT) altered oxidative stress responses compared with drinking water alone.1 The same participants completed multiple test days under different conditions so results reflected the food, not the person. The goal was to identify which real foods change stress during and immediately after intense exercise.

Participants were women ages 19 to 33 who didn’t exercise regularly and completed each training session after a 12-hour fast. Fasted training exaggerates oxidative stress, which made it easier to see how food altered the response. This mirrors what happens when you train first thing in the morning or skip fueling before workouts.

• Carbohydrates clearly reduced oxidative stress during the workout itself — When participants ate carbohydrate-rich foods, such as whole-grain bread, the rise in oxidative stress during training was smaller than when they consumed polyphenol-rich foods or water. Reactive oxygen species increased by about 12% in the water condition, signaling a strong stress response. Carbohydrate intake reduced this spike, helping the body stay closer to balance while muscles worked at high intensity.

• Stress markers linked to fatigue rose less with carbohydrates than with other options — The study measured a marker that rises when your body experiences acute stress. Carbohydrate intake significantly lowered this rise compared with both polyphenols and water.
This translates to less internal strain during training and a smaller stress burden to recover from afterward. If your goal is to perform hard intervals, circuits or repeated high-intensity sessions, carbohydrate intake before training reduces internal stress and protects recovery capacity.

• Timing mattered, with benefits appearing immediately during exercise — Blood samples taken before training and right after showed that carbohydrates acted during the workout, not hours later. This rapid effect highlights that what you eat two hours before training shapes how your body handles stress in real time. You don’t need weeks of loading to influence this response.

• Carbohydrates outperformed polyphenols during exercise but not after — While polyphenol-rich foods helped more during short-term recovery, carbohydrates were superior at limiting stress while the exercise was happening. This comparison shows that different foods serve different purposes depending on timing. From a strategy view, this lets you match food choice to your goal for that session.

• Fuel choice changes which energy system your muscles rely on — Burning glucose produces fewer reactive oxygen species than burning fat at high intensity. Carbohydrates push your muscles toward glucose use, which lowers the number of unstable oxygen molecules released inside mitochondria. In simple terms, glucose burns cleaner when effort is high.

Prior research cited in the paper also showed that carbohydrate intake reduces cortisol and other stress hormones during intense exercise. Lower hormone stress reduces immune disruption and muscle breakdown during hard sessions. This adds another layer of protection beyond energy supply.

Whole-Food Antioxidants Shape Recovery Without Blocking Progress

For a narrative review published in Antioxidants, researchers analyzed 28 human studies that tested whole dietary strategies on exercise-induced oxidative stress rather than isolated supplements.2 The researchers focused on real foods and mixed diets consumed before or after exercise, because these approaches reflect how people actually eat. The central question was whether food-based antioxidant strategies support recovery without interfering with the body’s normal training response.

Most studies included healthy, non-athletic adults exposed to demanding exercise protocols designed to raise oxidative stress. In general, untrained individuals show larger stress responses, which makes diet effects easier to detect. Across these studies, most whole-food strategies lowered markers of oxidative stress or inflammation after exercise.

• Whole foods consistently improved recovery markers — Many diets rich in fruits, vegetables, cocoa, oats, or berries reduced damage markers tied to muscle soreness and fatigue. These markers included lipid breakdown products and protein damage indicators, which rise when recovery lags. This means better tissue repair and less lingering soreness after hard sessions.

• Recovery improved when antioxidants came from whole foods — Several studies showed that diets rich in antioxidant-containing foods helped stress markers return to normal within hours or days after exercise, rather than changing what happened during the workout itself. Faster recovery determines how often you can train hard without breaking down. Consistent training, not any single session, is what drives long-term results.
Larger effects showed up after high-intensity or long-duration exercise and in people with lower baseline fitness. These groups experience higher oxidative strain, so food-based antioxidants delivered clearer benefits.

• Whole foods outperformed isolated antioxidant supplements — The review highlighted repeated failures of high-dose vitamin C or E to improve outcomes and noted cases where supplements blocked training gains. In contrast, diets combining many plant compounds lowered stress without shutting down beneficial signaling.

Fruits, vegetables, and grains contain thousands of interacting compounds, not a single antioxidant. These mixtures supported antioxidant defenses while preserving the body’s own stress-response systems. That synergy explains why whole foods succeeded where single nutrients failed.

• Key biological systems stayed active instead of suppressed — Several studies showed improved antioxidant enzyme activity, such as glutathione-related systems, after whole-food interventions. These enzymes are part of your internal cleanup crew, repairing damage after training. Supporting them strengthens resilience instead of outsourcing protection to supplements.

Why Whole Foods Outperform Antioxidant Supplements During Training

For a review published in the Asian Journal of Sports Medicine, researchers analyzed human and animal studies published between 1980 and 2013 to understand how exercise-driven oxidative stress interacts with antioxidant intake.3 The review focused specifically on whether antioxidant supplements improve outcomes during training or interfere with the body’s natural adaptation systems. This long timeframe allowed researchers to compare early assumptions with more modern findings.

The studies discussed involved recreationally active adults, competitive athletes, and experimental models exposed to prolonged or high-intensity exercise. These populations experience large increases in exercise-driven oxidative stress, which made them ideal for studying recovery, fatigue, and performance effects. Across this body of research, antioxidant supplementation showed mixed and often conflicting results.

• Exercise-generated stress was shown to play a necessary signaling role — Earlier research treated reactive oxygen species as purely damaging, linking them to muscle fatigue and tissue breakdown. Newer studies in the review demonstrated that these molecules also act as messengers that trigger beneficial adaptations, including improved insulin sensitivity and stronger antioxidant defenses. This explains why blocking them completely disrupts training progress.

• Supplement use reduced stress markers but often impaired progress — Many studies showed that vitamins such as C and E lowered laboratory markers of oxidative stress after exercise. However, this reduction frequently came at a cost. In several trials, supplementation interfered with signaling pathways needed for endurance gains, mitochondrial growth, and metabolic improvements.

• High-dose supplements disrupted internal defense systems — The review showed that antioxidant pills often reduced the activity of the body’s own antioxidant enzymes, including superoxide dismutase and glutathione peroxidase. These enzymes form your internal cleanup system after exercise.

When supplementation dampened this response, recovery became less efficient over time. Blocking reactive oxygen species too aggressively removed the signals that tell muscles to grow stronger and more efficient. Exercise stress was shown to act like a training instruction, not a flaw. When supplements erased that signal, progress slowed or reversed.

• Whole foods supported adaptation instead of blocking it — Diets rich in fruits, vegetables, legumes, and whole grains consistently supported antioxidant balance without suppressing training signals. Unlike supplements, whole foods delivered phytochemicals that worked together rather than overwhelming one pathway. This pattern preserved the beneficial effect of exercise stress while preventing excessive damage.

• Polyphenol-rich foods showed the most favorable balance — Plant compounds such as flavonoids and anthocyanins reduced oxidative damage while still activating mitochondrial and antioxidant signaling pathways.

Unlike isolated vitamins, these foods enhanced adenosine triphosphate (ATP) production, reduced muscle enzyme leakage, and supported endurance in experimental models. The researchers concluded that a balanced diet rich in natural antioxidants met recovery needs without interfering with training benefits.

How to Fuel Training so Stress Works for You, Not Against You

Think of exercise stress like a controlled fire. When it stays contained, it builds strength and resilience. When it runs wild, it drains recovery, disrupts sleep, and stalls progress. The root cause of poor recovery in hard training is rarely exercise itself. It’s mismatched fuel timing, overstimulation, and too much intensity stacked too often. These steps show you how to keep exercise stress productive instead of destructive.

1. Anchor hard workouts with carbohydrates, not stimulants — If you train with intervals, circuits, or heavy resistance, it would be wise to eat healthy carbohydrates before the session instead of relying on pre-workout stimulants like caffeine or Yohimbre. Food-based fuel keeps stress hormones lower and protects muscle tissue while effort is high.

Some pre-workout products may overstimulate your nervous system, especially later in the day, and that stimulation often carries into the night. When you remove them, your body actually shifts into recovery mode, allowing deeper sleep, steadier mood, and better training gains.

2. Rely on nutrition and hydration for steady energy — A balanced pre-training meal or snack that includes carbohydrates, protein, and fluids supports performance while keeping your system steady. When energy comes from consistent nourishment and sleep rather than stimulants or supplements, your body stops bouncing between peaks and crashes. That stability is what allows training stress to remain productive.

3. Avoid overdoing high-intensity sessions like HIIT — If you stack intense workouts too frequently, stress outpaces recovery and the benefits backfire. High-intensity training works best when used strategically, not daily. If you notice lingering soreness, poor sleep, or declining motivation, scale back intensity and allow lower-stress sessions, like walking, to support recovery. More effort is not always more progress.

4. Prioritize post-workout recovery with carbohydrates and protein — Muscles rebuild in a rest-and-digest state, not in fight-or-flight. Eating carbohydrates after training lowers cortisol and signals that it’s safe to repair tissue. Pair those carbs with protein within two hours, aiming for about 0.3 to 0.4 grams of protein per kilogram of body weight, roughly 20 to 40 grams for most adults. Within that dose, target about 2 to 3 grams of leucine to switch on muscle repair.

5. Personalize and simplify with clear feedback — Rate soreness, energy, and motivation the next day on a scale from one to five. Treat it like a simple scorecard. When scores improve after adjusting food, timing, or intensity, lock in the habit. Avoid blanket antioxidant pills around workouts, which interfere with progress. Whole foods support recovery while preserving training gains. When fuel, timing, and intensity align, exercise stress shifts from something that drains you into something you control.

FAQs About Food Choices, Oxidative Stress, and Exercise

Q: Why does what you eat around workouts affect recovery?
A: Food choices before and after training shape how your body handles internal stress from exercise. Proper fueling helps keep stress signals in a useful range so your body can recover, rebuild tissue, and stay consistent with training.

Q: Are carbohydrates important for high-intensity workouts?
A: Yes. Eating carbohydrates before intense exercise helps limit excessive internal stress during the workout and supports steadier energy. This reduces the recovery burden afterward and helps you train hard more consistently.

Q: Do antioxidant supplements help with exercise recovery?
A: Research shows isolated antioxidant supplements often lower stress markers but interfere with the signals your body needs to improve from training. Whole foods provide antioxidant support without blocking these benefits.

Q: Why are whole foods better than supplements for recovery?
A: Whole foods contain many interacting compounds that support your body’s own repair systems. This helps stress markers normalize after exercise while preserving the beneficial effects of training.

Q: How much high-intensity training is too much?
A: High-intensity sessions are most effective when used strategically, not daily. If soreness lingers, sleep worsens, or motivation drops, intensity is exceeding recovery capacity. Scaling back protects your long-term health and progress.

Muscle building depends on how quickly your body receives and uses amino acids after exercise, and that timing determines whether your workout translates into real progress or unnecessary soreness. Many people train hard but slow their own results with meal choices that interfere with this process. What you eat after training shapes the strength of your recovery signal, and the newest research underscores how sensitive this window is.

The structure of a meal — not just the amount of protein in it — influences the speed and effectiveness of muscle repair. Your body is constantly interpreting the nutrients you give it, and certain combinations accelerate the rebuilding phase while others hold it back. If you’ve ever wondered why similar workouts lead to completely different results from one person to another, this is one of the reasons.

Another piece that deserves attention is the level of daily protein intake needed to support consistent gains, especially if you train regularly. Many people mistake how much protein their body requires to maintain muscle and build more of it. The right intake supports stronger recovery, better composition changes, and a more resilient system overall.

Low-Fat Meals Trigger a Stronger Muscle-Building Signal

A recent study published in The American Journal of Clinical Nutrition investigated how different pork-based meals influence muscle protein synthesis after resistance training.1 While I don’t recommend pork due to its high level of linoleic acid (LA), the study reveals how different fat levels in your meals influence muscle growth.

The researchers compared three options — high-fat pork, low-fat pork, and a carbohydrate drink — to determine whether the fat content affects the body’s ability to repair and build muscle after exercise. This design allowed them to isolate fat as the key variable while keeping protein intake equal between the two pork meals.

• Healthy young adults completed exercise sessions before testing the meals — The study involved physically active adults who performed structured resistance exercise before consuming their assigned meal.2 Participants then underwent repeated blood draws and muscle biopsies, giving researchers highly accurate data on real-time muscle repair responses.

• Low-fat pork produced the strongest improvement in muscle-building activity — The low-fat pork meal triggered a sharper rise in myofibrillar protein synthesis, which is the process your body uses to repair and build muscle tissue after you train.

In contrast, the high-fat pork meal muted this muscle-building response so much that it looked similar to the carbohydrate drink. That means the fat in the meal affects your body’s ability to use the protein you just ate, even if the amount of protein is identical.3

• The most meaningful improvement was the faster leucine surge — Researchers reported that the low-fat meal produced a more rapid and higher peak in essential amino acids, especially leucine, compared to the high-fat meal.

Leucine acts like an ignition switch for muscle repair, and when it reaches your bloodstream quickly, your muscles begin rebuilding faster. With the high-fat meal, this leucine rise was delayed and smaller, which weakened the muscle-building signal. Faster amino acid absorption gives you an edge in rebuilding stronger muscle fibers.

• Time-based data showed slow digestion was the limiting factor — The high-fat pork slowed gastric emptying, meaning the food left the stomach more slowly. Slow emptying delays amino acid delivery into your bloodstream. By the time amino acids finally rose after the high-fat meal, the window for peak post-exercise sensitivity had already narrowed. If you train hard and expect optimal recovery, that timing mismatch works against you rather than for you.

• Additional signaling pathways confirmed the difference in response intensity — Measurements of pathways involved in muscle repair showed greater activation after the low-fat meal compared to the high-fat one. Although the mechanics varied across specific signaling proteins, the overall pattern matched the amino acid data: lean protein delivered a cleaner, stronger anabolic signal, while high-fat protein diluted that effect.

Higher Daily Protein Intake Strengthens Muscle, Bone, and Metabolic Health

A narrative review published in Nutrients investigated how eating protein well above the standard dietary recommendations affects trained adults who exercise regularly.4 The researchers evaluated how higher protein intake shapes lean mass, fat loss, metabolic markers, and bone health.

This review aimed to clarify whether consuming more protein than the minimum requirement delivers measurable physical benefits or simply exceeds what your body needs. Unlike narrow intervention trials, this work drew on controlled feeding studies, long-term training programs, and dietary assessments to determine how sustained high-protein intake affects whole-body physiology.

• Healthy, physically active adults showed distinct improvements with higher protein intake — The populations studied were composed largely of healthy adults who performed structured resistance or endurance training and had no chronic diseases affecting metabolism or muscle function. These individuals already consumed moderate protein before participating.

Across studies, those who increased daily protein intake experienced improvements in lean mass, reductions in fat mass, and measurable gains in bone-supportive markers. This indicates that higher protein intake supports multiple tissues, not just muscle.

The Recommended Dietary Allowance (RDA) is set at 0.8 grams of protein per kilogram of body weight, but many of the beneficial outcomes appeared at intakes two to three times higher. Most adults actually need about 0.8 grams of protein per pound of ideal body weight (or about 1.76 grams per kilogram).

• The greatest improvements involved increases in lean mass and decreases in body fat — The review found that elevated protein intake produced consistent increases in lean mass, meaning participants added more muscle tissue when they trained with higher protein intake. The improvements were not small; the researchers described significant increases in “fat-free body mass” across a range of training programs.

Fat mass reductions were also stronger in those consuming more protein, suggesting that protein supports a more favorable energy balance by increasing satiety and thermogenesis. Satiety refers to feeling full sooner and staying full longer, while thermogenesis refers to your body’s ability to generate heat by burning calories during digestion.

• Additional benefits appeared in strength performance and overall recovery — Higher protein intake supported better training quality by improving recovery markers and lowering soreness between workouts. Participants who consumed protein before sleep added strength and lean mass at a faster rate in several studies, as the amino acids delivered overnight supported continuous tissue repair.

Although the review did not quantify exact timelines, multiple trials demonstrated that protein consumed before bed enhanced the effect of evening training sessions. This gives you an actionable strategy: using pre-sleep protein to “extend” your anabolic window.

• Higher protein intake boosts muscle protein synthesis throughout the day, not just after workouts — This continuous elevation supports stronger remodeling of muscle tissue. Protein also enhances nitrogen balance, which reflects how effectively your body retains amino acids for tissue repair.

Nitrogen balance improves when you consume enough protein to exceed the amount your body breaks down. Enhanced nitrogen balance is associated with better recovery, stronger training adaptations, and increased functional capacity.

• Metabolic improvements reflected protein’s thermic and hormonal effects — Higher protein intake elevates diet-induced thermogenesis, meaning your body expends more energy digesting protein than digesting fat or carbohydrates. This effect supports fat loss by increasing total daily energy expenditure.

Protein-rich meals also stabilize blood sugar responses, supporting better metabolic health and preventing energy crashes that interfere with training. The review highlighted these effects as part of a broader metabolic advantage that high-protein diets offer active individuals.

Higher protein intakes also supported stronger bones when calcium intake was adequate. Protein stimulates bone-building pathways and supports the growth of muscle tissue, which applies healthy mechanical stress to bone. This dual effect promotes skeletal strength, offering you greater long-term resilience as you age or increase your training intensity.

Simple Ways to Strengthen Your Muscle-Building Response

Your body responds quickly when you give it the right inputs at the right time, and the research shows that what you eat after training influences how strongly you recover and how much strength you gain. If your workouts feel harder than they should or your progress has slowed, your post-exercise habits are often the limiting factor.

These steps address the real root cause: delayed amino acid delivery from high-fat meals and inadequate daily protein intake. If you train consistently, these changes give you a noticeable advantage.

1. Choose lean, low-LA protein within an hour after training — If you want faster recovery, choose protein sources that are both low in fat and naturally lower in LA. I do not recommend pork or chicken, as both tend to accumulate high levels of LA. High-fat meals slow digestion and delay amino acid delivery, weakening the muscle-building signal triggered by your workout.

Lean, low-LA options such as grass fed beef, bison, or a high-quality whey isolate give your muscles rapid access to the amino acids they need while reducing the oxidative stress associated with excessive LA intake.

2. Get enough high-quality protein — and balance it with collagen-rich sources — If you deal with tightness, stiffness, or slow recovery, increasing your protein intake gives your body the raw materials it needs for both muscle repair and connective tissue support. Most adults do best with about 0.8 grams of protein per pound of ideal body weight (about 1.76 grams per kilogram).

Red meat provides excellent complete protein, but muscle meat alone lacks key amino acids required for tendon, ligament, cartilage, and fascia health.

To fill this gap, make sure roughly one-third of your protein comes from collagen-rich sources such as bone broth, pure gelatin powder without additives, oxtail, shanks, or grass fed ground beef that includes connective tissue. These foods supply glycine, proline, and hydroxyproline — amino acids that strengthen joints, rebuild tissues, ease inflammation, and support deeper sleep.

3. Spread your protein evenly across your day — If most of your daily protein ends up at dinner, shifting toward even distribution helps your body stay in repair mode for longer. Your muscles respond more effectively when amino acids arrive in regular intervals rather than in one large meal. By having balanced portions at breakfast, lunch, your post-exercise meal, and dinner, you support steadier energy, stronger recovery, and higher training output.

4. Use protein before sleep if your goal is faster progress — with one important caveat — If you’re training intensely or feeling sore longer than you’d like, a small early-evening protein serving strengthens overnight repair. I normally advise avoiding food for at least three hours before bed, because late eating disrupts metabolic rhythms and interferes with natural nighttime repair. That remains the preferred rule.

If you want the added recovery benefit, finish this serving two to three hours before bed so digestion is complete before you lie down. Grass fed raw yogurt or pure gelatin powder stirred into warm herbal tea supplies a steady drip of amino acids through the night. This helps you wake up stronger, less sore, and more ready for training — without disrupting your circadian rhythm.

5. Keep your post-workout meal simple so your body absorbs amino acids without competition — If you load your plate with large, complex meals after training, your digestive system has to process too many nutrients at once, which distracts from the goal of driving amino acids into your bloodstream quickly. Your body works far more efficiently when the post-exercise meal is streamlined and easy to digest.

By limiting extras — heavy starches, added fats, or multiple side dishes — you give your system a clear pathway to absorb protein rapidly. That simplicity helps you activate muscle repair sooner, especially if your digestion tends to be sluggish after exercise. These shifts give you far more control over your training outcomes, allowing every workout to translate into stronger muscles, healthier connective tissue, better sleep, and steady long-term progress.

FAQs About Meal Fat Content and Muscle Building

Q: Why does the fat content of my post-workout meal matter for muscle building?
A: Fat slows digestion, which delays the rise of amino acids in your bloodstream. The featured research showed that even when protein amounts were identical, low-fat meals produced a stronger and faster muscle-building response than high-fat meals. When digestion slows, you miss the window of peak post-exercise sensitivity, weakening the anabolic signal your workout created.

Q: What type of protein is best to eat after training?
A: Lean, low-LA protein sources provide the fastest amino acid delivery. Grass fed beef, bison, or a high-quality whey isolate support rapid uptake. Pork and chicken are not ideal due to their high LA content, which introduces oxidative stress and reduces recovery efficiency.

Q: How much protein do I actually need each day?
A: Most adults need about 0.8 grams of protein per pound of ideal body weight (1.76 grams per kilogram) — far higher than the outdated RDA. Higher protein intake supports better muscle repair, stronger bones, greater fat loss, and more stable metabolic function, especially if you train regularly.

Q: Should I eat protein before bed?
A: A small, early-evening protein serving meaningfully improves overnight recovery. The key is timing: finish the serving two to three hours before bed to protect circadian rhythm. Options like grass fed raw yogurt or pure gelatin in warm herbal tea provide a slow, steady amino acid supply that supports nighttime tissue repair.

Q: How do I design a post-workout meal that truly supports recovery?
A: Keep it simple and easy to digest. Prioritize lean protein, avoid added fats, and limit heavy sides. Your digestive system can then focus on rapidly absorbing amino acids rather than processing a complex meal. This simplicity strengthens the muscle-building response and helps you recover faster between training sessions.

Test Your Knowledge with Today’s Quiz!
Take today’s quiz to see how much you’ve learned from yesterday’s Mercola.com article.

Why does fiber intake also affect mood and mental clarity, not just digestion?

Fiber directly feeds brain cells once it enters the bloodstream after digestion
Fiber raises blood sugar slowly, which stabilizes brain energy during stress
Fiber helps gut bacteria produce butyrate, which helps against stress and inflammation
Gut bacteria turn fiber into butyrate, which sends anti-inflammatory and stress-regulating signals from the gut to the brain. Learn more.
Fiber blocks stress hormones from crossing the blood-brain barrier during emotional strain

Many people think aging is a slow fade, but in reality, it’s a recalibration. Your brain doesn’t stop improving after 40 — it shifts gears. With every decade, experience, perspective, and emotional balance grow stronger, creating a kind of intelligence that no standardized test can measure.

What changes isn’t your ability to think, but how you think. You start to see patterns faster, recover from stress more easily, and make decisions that reflect both logic and lived experience. This mental and emotional balance is why many people in their 50s and 60s report greater confidence, steadier focus, and a deeper sense of clarity about what really matters.

The years that once looked like the beginning of decline are, in truth, your prime years for wisdom and insight. You’ve accumulated the knowledge, restraint, and perspective that younger minds haven’t yet earned. That blend of experience and awareness — supported by new research — is redefining what it means to be at your best. Science is now confirming what life experience has been showing all along: your mind doesn’t simply age; it evolves.

Your Brain Hits Its Sweet Spot Around Age 60

In a study published in Intelligence, researchers analyzed 16 different traits that shape human success — ranging from reasoning and memory to emotional intelligence and moral judgment.1 The goal was to determine when humans truly operate at their best across both mind and personality. Instead of focusing on just one skill, the researchers created a combined measure called the Cognitive–Personality Functioning Index (CPFI).

This index captures the full spectrum of how you think, feel, and perform in real life. Their conclusion was striking: overall functioning peaks between ages 55 and 60. This means your brain’s knowledge, judgment, and emotional stability work together most effectively in your late 50s.

• Midlife is when intelligence and maturity blend into true wisdom — The study confirmed that while “fluid intelligence” — your ability to think quickly and solve unfamiliar problems — declines after your 20s, other abilities keep growing for decades. Crystallized intelligence, which reflects what you’ve learned over a lifetime, rises steadily through adulthood and often peaks around 60.

Emotional intelligence also improves, allowing you to handle conflict, stress, and relationships with far greater ease. Traits like conscientiousness and emotional stability strengthen too, meaning you’re more disciplined, reliable, and calm under pressure. Together, these skills compensate for the loss of mental speed, creating a more balanced and resilient mind.

• Real-world success mirrors this biological rhythm — The researchers compared psychological performance to real-world data, finding that peak functioning lines up perfectly with career and leadership success. For instance, career earnings, occupational prestige, and even political leadership all tend to reach their highest point between ages 50 and 60.

This isn’t coincidence — it reflects how accumulated knowledge, emotional control, and sound judgment translate directly into better decision-making. You’re not just reacting to life anymore; you’re reading patterns, connecting dots, and choosing wisely. That’s why people in their late 50s often outperform younger counterparts in complex, high-stakes roles.

• Growth doesn’t stop when your processing speed slows down — it just shifts gears — The study shows that different parts of your brain and personality mature at different rates. Abilities like reasoning and working memory — skills that depend on quick mental processing — tend to peak by age 25 and decline gradually. But experience-based abilities, like emotional regulation, moral reasoning, and financial literacy, continue to strengthen for decades.

Financial literacy, for instance, keeps improving into your late 60s as you accumulate life experience managing money and evaluating risk. Likewise, resistance to common mental errors — like the sunk-cost fallacy, or continuing a bad decision just because you’ve already invested in it — improves steadily with age.

• You gain better judgment with experience, not just education — As people age, their brains rely less on raw speed and more on accumulated pattern recognition. This means your mental approach becomes more efficient and less reactive. Older adults are more likely to pause, reflect, and make balanced choices that prioritize long-term benefits over short-term impulses.

This aligns with the study’s findings that conscientiousness and emotional stability increase through midlife, helping you maintain focus and composure in challenging situations. You essentially become better at staying calm while everyone else panics.

Every Stage of Life Builds Toward This Midlife High Point

The researchers emphasize that the human mind evolves in stages, not in decline. Your 20s and 30s develop speed and adaptability. Your 40s refine strategic thinking and self-discipline. By your 50s, the accumulated gains from decades of learning, social experience, and emotional growth converge.

The result is a powerful balance between intellect and insight — a phase the researchers describe as composite functioning. This pattern supports the idea that your best decisions, career moves, and life choices often emerge later than you might expect.

• Brain function adapts through compensation, not deterioration — Biologically, this midlife peak happens because your brain compensates for losses in speed by strengthening other neural systems. Regions involved in emotion regulation and long-term memory grow more interconnected, allowing smoother coordination between thought and feeling.

Researchers interpret this as the brain’s natural optimization process — reallocating resources to sustain high-level functioning. So, while your reaction time may slow, your ability to integrate information and act wisely actually improves.

• The sweet spot for leadership and decision-making lands between 55 and 60 — The study’s authors highlight that people best suited for high-stakes roles — like executives, judges, or policymakers — are typically between 40 and 65, with a clear apex around 55 to 60. Before 40, impulsivity and limited experience often lead to poor judgment.

After 65, declines in cognitive flexibility and processing speed begin to outweigh the benefits of accumulated wisdom. This reinforces that midlife isn’t a decline — it’s the ideal period for making consequential, strategic decisions with a blend of intellect and emotional maturity.

• If you’re approaching 60, this is your time to lead, mentor, and make lasting impact — The takeaway from this research is deeply empowering: your 50s aren’t the beginning of decline — they’re the point where you finally integrate everything you’ve learned into practical mastery.

You’re likely more emotionally grounded, wiser in judgment, and stronger in purpose than at any other time in your life. By understanding how these strengths align, you can use this phase to teach, lead, and mentor others with clarity and confidence.

How to Keep Your Brain Sharp and Thriving Through Midlife and Beyond

Getting older isn’t about losing your edge — it’s about learning how to strengthen the systems that keep your brain and emotions at their best. The research shows your 50s and 60s are your peak years for wisdom, judgment, and emotional balance, but those gains depend on how well you care for your body and mind. You’re not at the mercy of decline. You’re in the driver’s seat. If you understand how to work with your biology, you can extend your cognitive prime well into later life. Here’s what to focus on:

1. Restore your cellular energy by supporting your mitochondria — Your brain’s sharpness depends on how well your mitochondria — the energy producers inside your cells — function. When they’re damaged, everything slows down, from focus to mood. The biggest offender is excess linoleic acid (LA), the polyunsaturated fat in seed oils like soybean, corn, sunflower, and canola.
These oils oxidize easily, creating inflammation and mitochondrial dysfunction that accelerate aging and drain mental energy.

Eliminating seed oils to reduce LA is the single most effective way to protect your mitochondria and restore steady, efficient energy production. Keep your LA intake below 5 grams daily, ideally aiming for less than 2 grams. To track your intake, I recommend you to download my Mercola Health Coach app when it’s available this year. It has a feature called the Seed Oil Sleuth, which monitors your LA intake to a tenth of a gram.

To fuel your cells, eat whole foods rich in stable fats and clean energy sources. Choose grass fed meats, pastured eggs, grass fed butter, tallow, and ghee instead of processed fats. Also include about 250 grams of healthy carbohydrates per day to keep your metabolism running efficiently. This combination gives your brain the balanced, sustainable energy it needs for focus, mood stability, and long-term vitality.

2. Keep your body moving every day — Your brain depends on oxygen, glucose, and strong circulation. Physical movement increases blood flow and boosts brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) — a molecule that helps form new neurons.2

If you’ve been sedentary, start with walking 10 to 20 minutes a day. If you’re already active, incorporate resistance training and hour-long walks to challenge your cardiovascular system. Your mental clarity often mirrors your physical vitality, so movement is nonnegotiable if you want to stay sharp.

3. Prioritize restorative sleep like your future depends on it — because it does — Memory consolidation and emotional regulation depend on deep, consistent sleep. In midlife, sleep patterns often change due to hormones or stress. Focus on creating a nighttime rhythm: dim lights, no screens after sunset, and a consistent bedtime. If you wake up feeling unrefreshed, get morning sunlight to reset your circadian rhythm. Good sleep isn’t a luxury — it’s maintenance for your brain’s long-term performance.

4. Build emotional resilience through purpose and connection — Emotional intelligence — the very skill that peaks around age 60 — thrives when you stay engaged with people and meaningful work. If you’re retired, teach what you know. Mentor someone younger. Volunteer in ways that use your strengths.

Finding Joy and purpose keeps your prefrontal cortex active, and social connection protects against depression and cognitive decline. If you’re feeling isolated, start small: one phone call, one coffee, one shared goal. Your relationships are part of your brain’s operating system.

5. Train your brain through real-world learning — The same way exercise builds muscle, challenging your brain keeps neural connections strong. If you’re an avid reader, add something new — learn a skill outside your comfort zone. Try learning a language, playing an instrument, or studying a complex topic that forces your brain to form new connections. You don’t need formal schooling — daily curiosity is enough.

Aim for activities that stretch your attention span and require real problem-solving, not passive scrolling or entertainment. You don’t need to chase youth — you need to optimize the stage you’re in. If you build these habits into your daily rhythm, your mind won’t just stay clear; it will keep expanding. You’ll think slower but wiser, respond calmer, and live with more clarity and confidence than ever before.

FAQs About Peaking at 60

Q: At what age do most people reach their mental and emotional peak?
A: According to research published in Intelligence, overall human functioning — including intelligence, emotional stability, and personality traits — peaks between ages 55 and 60.3 This is when your brain’s knowledge, judgment, and emotional balance work together most effectively.

Q: Why does brain performance improve in midlife instead of decline?
A: Rather than deteriorating, your brain compensates for slower processing speed by strengthening neural networks tied to memory, emotion, and judgment. This natural reorganization allows smoother coordination between thought and feeling, helping you make wiser, more integrated decisions as you age.

Q: What lifestyle habits support optimal brain health in your 50s and 60s?
A: The key is to protect your mitochondria — your body’s energy engines. Eliminate seed oils high in LA, eat healthy fats like grass fed butter and tallow, and include about 250 grams of healthy carbohydrates from fruits and root vegetables. Combine this with daily movement, restorative sleep, and ongoing mental challenges to sustain focus and energy.

Q: How does emotional intelligence change with age?
A: Emotional intelligence — your ability to understand, manage, and respond to emotions — increases steadily through adulthood. People in their 50s and 60s are typically more patient, empathetic, and emotionally stable, which strengthens relationships, leadership, and resilience under stress.

Q: What’s the best way to stay mentally sharp after 50?
A: Stay curious and keep learning. Engage your brain through real-world learning — such as studying a new language, playing an instrument, or teaching others. Combine that mental training with physical exercise, meaningful social connection, and purpose-driven activities to keep your brain thriving well into your 70s and beyond.

When you think of ultraprocessed foods (UPFs), you likely think of chips, soda, and fast-food meals that are usually consumed by younger age groups, like Gen Z and Gen Alpha. However, a recent study shows surprising findings — a significant number of older Americans today are actually consuming high amounts of ultraprocessed foods.

What makes this data so striking is that these older adults are not casual snackers or people who occasionally indulge in chips or sweets. According to the analysis, the participants reported signs of ultraprocessed food addiction, such as strong cravings, failed attempts to cut back, and continued consumption despite negative health effects.

In other words, their relationship with food mirrored what you’d see in someone hooked on nicotine or alcohol — except the substance was a boxed meal or a sweetened drink.

What Counts as an ‘Ultraprocessed’ Food?

When you hear the term “ultraprocessed,” it isn’t just referring to anything that comes in a package. The distinction lies in how a food is made and what it’s made from. Many packaged foods — like frozen vegetables, plain oats, or canned beans — are processed for safety and preservation, but they still retain their natural structure and nutrients. Ultraprocessed foods, on the other hand, are a completely different story.

• Definition of ultraprocessed foods — According to the NOVA classification, a system developed by researchers at the University of São Paulo, UPFs are “formulations of ingredients, mostly of exclusive industrial use, typically created by series of industrial techniques and processes.”1 In short, they are made mostly or entirely from industrial ingredients rather than natural foods. These foods are designed to be convenient, hyper-palatable, and shelf-stable.

• Groceries and supermarkets are now overflowing with ultraprocessed food — Examples include sweetened breakfast cereals, flavored yogurt cups, instant noodles, snack bars, sodas, and even some frozen meals labeled “healthy.” The list also extends to processed breads, flavored nut milks, and many plant-based “meat” alternatives. These foods are often marketed with buzzwords like “natural,” “organic,” or “gluten-free,” but the processing level, not the label, is what matters most.

• At least two-thirds of your diet is now made up of ultraprocessed junk foods — A study published in Nature Communications notes that more than 73% of the American food supply is ultraprocessed.2 A separate study published in Public Health Nutrition noted that sodas topped the ultraprocessed list (90%), followed by mixed dishes and soups (81%), and sweets and snacks (71%).3

• Understanding this category isn’t about guilt; it’s about clarity — Once you can identify UPFs, you start seeing them everywhere, from breakfast to bedtime snacks. Here’s a quick comparison for you to use to spot the difference between ultraprocessed and minimally processed choices:

Everyday UPF
Better Whole-Food Swap

Flavored yogurt cup
Plain yogurt with berries and cinnamon

Packaged cookies
Sliced apple with peanut butter

Chips
Air-popped popcorn or baked root chips

Instant noodles
Rice noodles with broth, vegetables, and egg

Soda
Sparkling water with lemon or lime

• Each of these swaps keeps the familiar taste or texture but removes the industrial ingredients that alter your metabolism — UPFs are designed to light up reward circuits in the brain,4 specifically the dopamine system that regulates pleasure and motivation (more on this later).5 That’s why the first bite feels so good, but the satisfaction fades quickly, driving you back for more.

Previous studies have highlighted how ultraprocessed foods are now dominating children’s diets, making up as much as 70% of their diet. However, recent findings reveal that older adults are no exception — they too consume significant quantities of ultraprocessed foods.

Do Many Older Adults Show Signs of Ultraprocessed Food Addiction?

Recent data from the University of Michigan’s Institute for Healthcare Policy and Innovation revealed a striking trend — A large segment of older adults now meets the criteria for addiction to UPFs. Published in the journal Addiction, the study analyzed responses from 2,038 Americans aged between 50 and 80 years old who participated in the U-M National Poll on Healthy Aging.6,7

• Researchers used a modified version of the Yale Food Addiction Scale (YFAS 2.0) to assess behavior — This standardized tool applies the same diagnostic framework used for substance use disorders. It evaluates factors such as tolerance (needing more for the same effect), withdrawal-like symptoms, and loss of control.

• Across all participants, 12.4% met the criteria for ultraprocessed food addiction — Younger seniors who belong to Gen X or are within the tail end of the Baby Boomers generation (specifically those aged 50s and 64) had the highest addiction rates, with 15.7% meeting the criteria for ultraprocessed food addiction.

• Lower rates were seen in the Baby Boomers generation — Among adults aged 65 to 80, 8.2% met the threshold for addiction. These numbers are significant because they suggest that this type of food dependence doesn’t fade with age — it persists, and for some, it even intensifies.

• In terms of gender, UPF addiction shows an opposite pattern than other substance use disorders — Historically, older men were more prone to substance addiction, but in the case of UPFs, a higher prevalence was seen in older women when broken down by gender. In this study, 16.9% of women qualified compared to 7.5% of men. The highest rates appeared among women aged 50 to 64, where 21% met the addiction threshold.

• So why are Gen Xers especially affected? The answer is simple — UPFs are booming during their developmental years. These generations grew up during the 1980s and 1990s, decades defined by the explosion of convenience foods, low-fat marketing, and the normalization of processed snacks in daily life.

The same “quick and easy” products that shaped their diets in adolescence are now associated with higher rates of addictive eating behaviors decades later. According to the website Study Finds:

“This pattern aligns with established addiction science. Earlier exposure to addictive substances dramatically increases risk …

The younger group in this study … were children and adolescents when ultraprocessed foods became ubiquitous. The older group was already in their 20s and 30s, potentially past the highest-risk developmental period.”8

• These findings spark concern about what lies ahead for younger generations — Children and adolescents today eat even greater amounts of ultraprocessed foods than older adults did at their age, with these products now making up most of the calories consumed by American youth. If these habits continue unchecked, the rates of ultraprocessed food addiction are likely to rise as this generation grows older.

What Are the Signs of Ultraprocessed Food Addiction?

Recognizing the signs of ultraprocessed food addiction starts with understanding that this isn’t just about overeating or lacking willpower. It’s a pattern of behavior that mirrors classic addiction symptoms. Below is a plain-language checklist to help you gauge whether your habits might reflect an addictive relationship with ultraprocessed foods:9,10

• Loss of control — You often eat more than you planned or can’t stop once you start, like finishing an entire bag of chips when you meant to have just a few.
• Craving and preoccupation — You think about these foods often, plan when you’ll have them next, or feel uneasy when they’re not available.
• Tolerance-like behavior — Over time, it takes larger amounts of the same food to feel satisfied or to get the same “comforting” effect.
• Withdrawal-like symptoms — When you try to cut back, you feel irritable, low in energy, or moody, similar to withdrawal symptoms seen in other forms of addiction.
• Continued use despite harm — You keep eating ultraprocessed foods even when you know they worsen your weight, digestion, blood sugar, or mood.
• Repeated failed attempts to cut back — You’ve tried to stop or reduce your intake multiple times but end up returning to old patterns.
• Social or emotional impact — Eating these foods leads to guilt, secrecy, or isolation. You might avoid social events where healthier food is served or feel embarrassed about your habits.

If several of these feel familiar, it doesn’t mean you’re weak — it means you’re responding to foods intentionally engineered to override your natural appetite control.

It’s also important to understand how ultraprocessed food addiction differs from binge eating disorder (BED).11 While both involve loss of control and emotional distress, BED is classified as a psychiatric condition and typically includes large, rapid eating episodes with guilt or shame afterward. Ultraprocessed food addiction, by contrast, centers on dependency-like symptoms related to specific products rather than the size or timing of meals.

Is Ultraprocessed Food Addiction the Same as Food Addiction or Sugar Addiction?

People often use the terms “food addiction,” “sugar addiction,” and “ultraprocessed food addiction” interchangeably, but they aren’t identical. Each describes a different layer of how the modern diet interacts with the brain’s reward system. Understanding those distinctions helps you focus on what really drives cravings — the overall pattern, not just one ingredient.

• Think of these terms as overlapping circles in a Venn diagram — “Food addiction” is the broadest circle, describing a behavioral dependence on eating itself, regardless of the specific food. “Sugar addiction” sits inside that, referring to dependence on sweet tastes and the rapid dopamine spikes caused by refined sugars.

“Ultraprocessed food addiction” overlaps both, but it extends further; it’s about addiction to industrial formulations that combine sugar, fat, salt, and chemical additives in precise ratios designed to hijack the brain’s pleasure centers.

• Why this difference matters — Many people who believe they’re addicted to sugar are actually responding to the combination effect of multiple engineered ingredients. Chips, fast-food sandwiches, and processed meats contain little or no sugar, yet they can trigger the same compulsive responses.

These foods stimulate reward pathways not just through sweetness, but through texture, flavor enhancers, emulsifiers, and rapid digestibility, all of which amplify dopamine signaling and blunt satiety cues. In other words, you’re not addicted to one nutrient — you’re addicted to the formula.

• Ultraprocessed foods are constructed to hit multiple reward triggers simultaneously — That’s why a sugary soda, salty snack, or creamy dessert can all feel equally irresistible. It’s not the sugar or the fat alone, but the way they’re combined and presented to your brain.

When you focus only on sugar, you risk missing the full picture. Many “sugar-free” or “low-carb” products still qualify as ultraprocessed and continue to feed the same cycle of craving and dependency.

• The practical takeaway is simple — Shift your focus away from counting grams of sugar or carbs, and instead evaluate how processed your food really is. If a product’s ingredient list reads like a chemistry set, it’s part of the same addictive matrix.

Breaking free starts with identifying patterns, not villains. Once you understand that the problem isn’t one substance but a whole system of engineered foods, it becomes easier to choose what truly supports your health and energy balance.

Why Are Ultraprocessed Foods Addictive?

Ultraprocessed foods seem addictive because they are engineered to hijack your brain’s reward system. When you eat these foods, your brain releases a surge of dopamine, the same neurotransmitter that reinforces pleasure-seeking behaviors and plays a central role in cravings.

Traditionally, dopamine helps you feel satisfied during mealtimes. But with ultraprocessed foods, the hit is so intense and so immediate that it overrides normal controls. As a result, you keep eating even when you’re full.

• Manufacturers understand this system perfectly — The food industry uses what’s called the “bliss point” — a calculated ratio of sugar, salt, and fat that maximizes pleasure while preventing sensory fatigue.12 Add artificial flavorings, emulsifiers, and texture enhancers, and you get a food that’s nearly impossible to stop eating. These combinations are what scientists describe as hyper-palatable,13 meaning they overwhelm your taste buds and override your body’s ability to regulate appetite.

• The addictive power doesn’t come from taste alone — Visual and emotional cues intensify the pull, too. Glossy packaging, bright colors, and enticing slogans link these foods to happiness, comfort, or reward. Even the sound of certain crunchy textures and the smell of familiar snacks can trigger dopamine release before you take a bite. This anticipatory response wires the brain to associate ultraprocessed foods with emotional relief and immediate pleasure.

• This reveals a deeper truth — The addictive nature of ultraprocessed foods isn’t only about ingredients; it’s about design. These foods are built for speed — fast digestion, fast pleasure, and fast return. For more information on this topic, I recommend reading “Why Can’t We Stop Eating Certain Foods?”

Breaking the cycle starts with awareness. Once you understand that ultraprocessed foods are deliberately crafted to manipulate your neurochemistry, it becomes easier to see them for what they are — not comfort, but conditioning.

How to Stop Eating Ultraprocessed Foods Without Feeling Deprived

Quitting ultraprocessed foods doesn’t mean you have to live on bland meals or give up convenience. The goal isn’t restriction — it’s replacement. When you build your meals with the right anchors and strategies, cravings lose their grip, energy stabilizes, and food starts to feel satisfying again. Here’s a simple seven-step plan to help you make lasting changes without feeling deprived.

1. Shift what you stock — Start inside your home, because what’s in your pantry drives what you eat. Replace the high-turnover “snack zone” foods like chips, crackers, and sugary granola bars with ready-to-eat whole foods, such as fresh fruit, hard-boiled eggs, yogurt, or leftovers you actually like. If it’s not in your home, it won’t end up on your plate.

2. Anchor every meal with protein and fiber — Protein and fiber help stabilize blood sugar and keep you full for hours. Think pastured eggs, grass fed beef, wild-caught salmon, or beans paired with vegetables, fruit, or cooked whole grains. The protein slows digestion while fiber feeds your gut bacteria, helping you stay satisfied and reducing cravings for refined, fast-digesting foods.

3. Make smart swaps, not sacrifices — Trade the texture and taste you crave for healthier versions. Replace flavored yogurt with plain yogurt and berries, chips with air-popped popcorn, or soda with sparkling water and citrus. Keep the sensory experience — crunch, sweetness, or fizz — but remove the additives and seed oils that trigger overeating.

4. Redesign your food environment — Keep whole foods visible and accessible. Move fresh fruit to the front of your fridge, store cut veggies in clear containers, and put tempting snacks out of reach or out of sight. The fewer cues you see, the fewer urges you feel. This simple change retrains your brain to associate real food with reward, not packaged products.

5. Read labels like a detective — You don’t need to memorize every additive; just look for patterns. The longer the ingredient list, the more likely it’s ultraprocessed. Watch for added sugars, refined starches, and seed oils such as soybean, corn, or sunflower oil.

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) recommends using the Nutrition Facts label to check for added sugars and sodium content.14 A short ingredient list usually means fewer industrial formulations and more real food.

6. Plan treats on purpose — Instead of banning your favorite foods, schedule them intentionally. Choose one meal or occasion each week where you enjoy a favorite item mindfully, without guilt or distraction. When you give yourself permission and structure, you remove the emotional charge that fuels binges.

7. Build social support — Food habits are social habits. Talk to friends or family about your goals, or find a group that supports mindful eating or whole-food living who will help encourage your progress. Consulting with a registered dietitian nutritionist (RDN) can also help tailor strategies to your health goals.

Mini ‘Cravings Toolkit’

When cravings strike, your brain is chasing comfort, not calories. Understanding what cravings represent — a conditioned dopamine response — will help you stop fighting them and start redirecting them. Here’s how to interrupt the pattern without willpower battles:

• Pause for 10 minutes — Cravings fade quickly if you delay acting on them. Use that window to drink water, stretch, or step outside.
• Ask, “What am I really craving?” — Often it’s relief from boredom or stress, not food itself.
• Replace the cue, not the comfort — If you crave crunch, grab carrots or cucumber sticks. If it’s sweetness you want, try fruit or a spoonful of honey in yogurt.
• Script your response — Tell yourself: “This is a craving, not a command. I can choose how to respond.” Rehearsing this phrase rewires your reaction over time.
• Plan recovery meals — Keep a nourishing backup, such as fruit, homemade broth, or a smoothie, ready for when cravings hit hard.

Quick Self-Check and Resources for Support

If you’re wondering whether your eating patterns reflect addiction-like behavior, a quick self-check can help clarify it. You can refer to tools like the modified Yale Food Addiction Scale (mYFAS 2.0) used in the featured study to gauge your ultraprocessed food addiction.

This tool’s purpose is to help you recognize patterns so you can take action. If you answer “yes” to several of these experiences, it means your relationship with ultraprocessed foods deserves attention. There are also resources that can provide support on how to stop eating ultraprocessed foods and break your addiction. Check out these strategies:

Find a Registered Dietitian Nutritionist (RDN) through the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics directory, at Eatright.org.15
Look for science-based programs addressing food addiction, mindful eating, or emotional eating — Avoid “detox” or “cleanse” programs that restrict entire food groups.
The National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI) Helpline (1-800-950-6264) and SAMHSA’s National Helpline (1-800-662-HELP) offer free, confidential referrals for eating or addiction-related concerns.
Review the most recent USDA Dietary Guidelines for Americans16 and the FDA’s Nutrition Facts Label Guide17 for more educational information to guide your healthy eating choices.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) About Ultraprocessed Food Addiction

Q: Are older adults really affected by ultraprocessed food addiction?
A: Yes, and the numbers are significant. A large University of Michigan study published in Addiction found that 12.4% of older adults met the criteria for ultraprocessed food addiction. The problem was especially pronounced among those aged 50 to 64 — roughly 21% of women and 10% of men fell into the addicted range.

Q: What makes ultraprocessed foods so addictive?
A: UPFs are built around what manufacturers call the “bliss point” — the perfect balance of sugar, fat, and salt that maximizes pleasure and triggers dopamine release in the brain. Add in emulsifiers, flavorings, and appealing textures, and they become almost impossible to stop eating. Even the smell, sound, and packaging can cue your brain’s reward system, reinforcing cravings before the first bite.

Q: Are breakfast cereals considered ultraprocessed?
A: Yes, many popular breakfast cereals fall into the ultraprocessed category. While they may appear healthy, they often contain refined grains, added sugars, flavorings, and industrial additives that strip away nutrients and disrupt natural appetite regulation. Even cereals labeled “whole grain” or “low-fat” can be deceptive if they include stabilizers, emulsifiers, or seed oils.

Q: What if my overall diet is ‘mostly healthy’?
A: Even if you eat plenty of fruits and vegetables, regularly consuming ultraprocessed foods can still harm your metabolism. Research links high UPF intake to obesity, insulin resistance, poor cardiovascular health, and cognitive decline. Many of these effects come from additives, seed oils, and refined starches that disrupt the gut-brain axis and energy balance.

Q: How can I start cutting back without feeling restricted?
A: Start with small, manageable swaps. Replace one processed meal or snack each day with a whole-food option. Anchor every meal with protein and fiber, such as eggs with vegetables, yogurt with fruit, or fish with rice and greens. Redesign your kitchen so the most nourishing foods are visible and ready to eat, while processed snacks are out of reach. And don’t aim for perfection — plan intentional treats, enjoy them mindfully, and move on. Consistency, not deprivation, rewires your cravings.

Q: What resources are available for help?
A: If you think your relationship with food is affecting your health, start with a self-check using the modified Yale Food Addiction Scale (mYFAS 2.0), the same tool researchers use to identify patterns of ultraprocessed food dependence. You can also find a Registered Dietitian Nutritionist (RDN), explore support groups, and contact NAMI’s Helpline (1-800-950-6264) or SAMHSA’s Helpline (1-800-662-HELP) for confidential guidance.
Review the USDA Dietary Guidelines for Americans and FDA Nutrition Facts Label Guide for practical education on healthier choices.

Prediabetes is a silent condition that develops when your blood sugar runs higher than normal but not yet high enough to qualify as diabetes. In teens, it often goes unnoticed because there are no clear warning signs. Some young people might feel more tired than usual, get thirsty often, use the bathroom more, or even notice changes in their vision, but many feel nothing at all.

That hidden nature is what makes it dangerous — by the time it progresses into Type 2 diabetes, the damage to your body has already begun. This stage of poor blood sugar control is not just about diabetes risk. It also raises your odds of heart disease, stroke, and other chronic problems that shorten a young person’s healthy years of life.

Experts describe it as a warning light, signaling that the body’s energy system is under strain. The fact that this is happening more frequently in teenagers reflects a larger metabolic crisis that now touches both adolescents and adults. Recognizing that these changes are showing up so early in life is what makes the new data so important.

The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has revealed just how many teens are already living with prediabetes and how quickly the problem is growing. That evidence gives us a clearer picture of what’s happening inside adolescent bodies — and why urgent changes are needed to protect their future health.

CDC Data Reveals a New Reality for Teen Prediabetes

Using data from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES), researchers analyzed the health status of adolescents ages 12 to 17.1 They defined prediabetes as fasting glucose between 100 and 125 milligrams per deciliter or an A1c — a blood test that shows your average blood sugar over the past three months — between 5.7% and 6.4%. Their goal was to estimate how many teens in the U.S. are living with this condition.

• The study revealed just how widespread prediabetes in teens has become — In 2023, 32.7% of adolescents — roughly 8.4 million young people — were living with prediabetes. That means about 1 in 3 U.S. teenagers is already showing early signs of metabolic dysfunction. These figures are based on a nationally representative sample, which makes them a reliable reflection of the population at large.

• This health crisis is not limited to one group — Risk factors like being overweight, having a parent or sibling with Type 2 diabetes, and being physically inactive were strongly tied to prediabetes.2 In other words, if you have a family history or live a sedentary lifestyle, your chances of developing prediabetes as a teen are higher.

• The rate of prediabetes is climbing compared to earlier years — When researchers adjusted older data with their updated methods, they found that from 2005 to 2016, the prediabetes prevalence for adolescents would have been 28%. Today, that number has jumped to nearly 33%, showing a rapid increase over just a few years. That shift represents millions of additional teens now entering adulthood burdened with impaired glucose control.

• Teens with prediabetes are already on the path to serious disease — The CDC called this condition a “warning sign” because it signals a much higher chance of progressing to Type 2 diabetes, heart disease, and stroke. For parents and young people, that means ignoring these early signals sets the stage for lifelong health struggles.

About 2.5% of teens had both abnormal fasting glucose and abnormal A1c readings, a stronger indicator of metabolic dysfunction. For these adolescents, the risk of rapid progression to Type 2 diabetes is especially high. Dr. Christopher Holliday of the CDC told ABC News, “Type 2 diabetes poses a significant threat to young people’s health,” emphasizing the importance of intervening now.3

Lifestyle Choices Today Decide Whether Prediabetes Becomes Diabetes Tomorrow

Being overweight, eating ultraprocessed foods, and not staying active increases prediabetes risk. This gives you practical leverage: by encouraging your teen to move more, eat whole foods, and avoid processed junk, you dramatically cut their chances of developing diabetes. Holliday stated, “Simple life changes — like healthy eating and staying active — can make a big difference in preventing or delaying Type 2 diabetes.”4

• Biological mechanisms explain why prediabetes leads to disease — Elevated glucose levels damage the lining of blood vessels, increase oxidative stress, and strain your pancreas as it struggles to produce more insulin. Over time, this wears down your body’s ability to manage blood sugar, eventually leading to full Type 2 diabetes. Once that threshold is crossed, your risk of nerve damage, kidney disease, heart disease, and vision loss becomes much greater.

• Prediabetes disrupts your body’s energy system through mitochondrial dysfunction — Your mitochondria are the tiny power plants inside your cells that convert glucose into usable energy.

In prediabetes, insulin resistance prevents glucose from entering cells efficiently, and when mitochondria are already damaged, this process breaks down even further. Instead of fueling your cells, sugar piles up in your bloodstream, leaving your body both overloaded and starved at the same time.

This mismatch drains your teen’s energy, reduces motivation, and traps them in a cycle of fatigue and poor metabolic health that grows worse without intervention. When mitochondria falter, especially in tissues like your pancreas, liver, and fat cells, the risk of progressing from prediabetes to diabetes skyrockets because insulin-producing cells stop working properly.

• The scale of the problem is reshaping the health landscape — The CDC reported that adult diabetes diagnoses, which had been declining for more than a decade, are no longer falling. In 2023, about 1.5 million adults were newly diagnosed with diabetes.5 This parallel trend suggests that teens with prediabetes today are tomorrow’s diabetes patients, adding further strain to families, communities, and health care systems.

• The research underscores the urgency for early action — For your teen, this means understanding that their daily choices — what they eat, how much they move, and how they manage stress — have a direct impact on whether they prevent or reverse prediabetes or slide into diabetes. Framing the challenge as a winnable game is key: track progress, set goals, and celebrate small victories, because each step away from ultraprocessed foods and inactivity is a step toward restoring energy and health.

Simple Steps to Help Your Teen Reverse Prediabetes

Hearing that 1 in 3 teens has prediabetes is alarming for any parent. But this isn’t a dead end — it’s a warning light. Prediabetes means your child’s cells aren’t making energy the way they should, and that drives blood sugar higher than normal.

The good news is that you can help them turn this around before it develops into something much more serious. These steps are practical changes you can start making at home that support your teen’s health in ways they’ll actually notice — more energy, sharper focus, and better mood.

1. Clear vegetable oils and processed snacks from their diet — The first step is to look at the foods most teens eat: fries, chips, packaged snacks, and restaurant meals. Almost all of them contain vegetable oils like canola, soybean, and sunflower oil. These oils are rich in linoleic acid (LA) that damages your mitochondria, setting the stage for blood sugar problems.

Replace them with foods prepared at home using butter, ghee, or tallow. For snacks, encourage whole-food options like fruit or grass fed cheese. Think of this as resetting your teen’s “energy software” so their body runs on full power again.

2. Reintroduce carbohydrates in a smart way — Teens need carbs for energy, especially for growing bodies, busy school days, and sports. The problem is not carbs — it’s the wrong kind of carbs. If your teen has gut issues, start with gentle foods like white rice and fruit.

As their digestion improves, expand to root vegetables, beans, and whole grains. Carbs fuel the brain and muscles, so the right amount helps them concentrate in class, perform better in sports, and stay in a good mood instead of crashing.

3. Reduce exposure to everyday toxins — Your child is exposed daily to plastics, personal care products, and nonstop Wi-Fi. These stressors interfere with their body’s ability to make energy. Small changes add up: switch to glass or stainless steel water bottles, avoid microwaving food in plastic, and encourage them to keep their phone out of their pocket and away from their bed at night.

If your teen likes challenges, frame this as a “low-plastic” or “phone-free sleep” experiment — they’ll be more likely to stick with it if it feels like a goal instead of a rule.

4. Build in regular sunlight for natural energy — Sunlight charges more than vitamin D. It triggers melatonin inside mitochondria, which protects energy production. Encourage sun exposure daily — walking the dog, biking to a friend’s house, or sitting outside after school.

If your family has eaten a lot of vegetable oils in the past, give it at least six months of reducing them before getting longer midday sun exposure, because those oils increase the risk of sunburn. Over time, daily sunlight helps improve sleep, mood, and energy regulation in teens.

5. Use the HOMA-IR test as a tracking tool — One of the most motivating ways to help your teen is to make progress visible. Recognizing insulin resistance early is essential, as it’s a warning sign for your metabolic health — one that often precedes Type 2 diabetes.

The HOMA-IR (Homeostatic Model Assessment of Insulin Resistance) test is a valuable diagnostic tool that helps assess insulin resistance through a simple blood test, so you can spot issues early and make necessary lifestyle changes.

Created in 1985, it calculates the relationship between your fasting glucose and insulin levels to evaluate how effectively your body uses insulin. Unlike other more complex tests, HOMA-IR requires just one fasting blood sample, making it both practical and accessible. The HOMA-IR formula is as follows:

HOMA-IR = (Fasting Glucose x Fasting Insulin) / 405, where

• Fasting glucose is measured in mg/dL
• Fasting insulin is measured in μIU/mL (microinternational units per milliliter)
• 405 is a constant that normalizes the values

If you’re using mmol/L for glucose instead of mg/dL, the formula changes slightly:

HOMA-IR = (Fasting Glucose x Fasting Insulin) / 22.5, where

• Fasting glucose is measured in mmol/L
• Fasting insulin is measured in μIU/mL
• 22.5 is the normalizing factor for this unit of measurement

Anything below 1.0 is considered a healthy HOMA-IR score. If you’re above that, you’re considered insulin resistant. The higher your values, the greater your insulin resistance. Conversely, the lower your HOMA-IR score, the less insulin resistance you have, assuming you are not a Type 1 diabetic who makes no insulin.

Interestingly, my personal HOMA-IR score stands at a low 0.2. This low score is a testament to my body’s enhanced efficiency in burning fuel, a result of increased glucose availability. By incorporating additional carbohydrates into my diet, I provided my cells with the necessary energy to operate more effectively.

This improved cellular function has significantly boosted my metabolic health, demonstrating how strategic dietary adjustments lead to better insulin sensitivity and overall metabolic performance.

FAQs About Prediabetes in Teens

Q: What does it mean if my teen has prediabetes?
A: Prediabetes means your teen’s blood sugar is higher than normal but not high enough for Type 2 diabetes. It’s a warning sign that their body is struggling to manage sugar, and without changes, it often leads to diabetes, heart disease, or stroke.

Q: How common is prediabetes in teenagers?
A: According to the CDC, about 1 in 3 U.S. teens — around 8.4 million adolescents — now live with prediabetes. This number has climbed quickly in recent years, showing that the problem is getting worse, not better.

Q: What are the biggest risk factors for teen prediabetes?
A: Being overweight, eating a diet high in ultraprocessed foods, not getting enough physical activity, and having a family history of diabetes all increase the chances of developing prediabetes.

Q: What happens inside my body during prediabetes?
A: In prediabetes, insulin resistance prevents glucose from moving into cells efficiently. This overloads your bloodstream with sugar, damages blood vessels, and wears out your pancreas. Over time, your body loses its ability to control blood sugar, which leads to diabetes and other health issues.

Q: What can parents do to help their teen reverse prediabetes?
A: Parents can support their teen by clearing vegetable oils and processed snacks from the diet, offering healthy carb sources like fruit, reducing toxin exposure, encouraging daily sunlight, and tracking progress with tools like the HOMA-IR test. Small, consistent changes restore energy, improve mood, and lower the risk of diabetes.

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As a parent evaluating pediatric guidance, what key red flag should you watch for given these concerns?

Drug company funding tied to pediatric associations to restrict parental control
The American Academy of Pediatrics receives funding from major pharmaceutical companies, influencing policies that promote more medical interventions while limiting parental authority. Learn more.
Independent funding sources that are entirely free from corporate influence
A prevention-first approach designed to address the root causes of illness
Expanded decision-making rights granted directly to parents on child health

Researchers have documented a dramatic rise in pediatric-onset chronic conditions over the last two decades. The most common examples include asthma, attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), and prediabetes (which develop into full diabetes over time), leading to an increased risk of heart disease, nerve damage, and kidney failure. In the United States, nearly one in three children is living with these chronic conditions.

If you think this issue only impacts their childhood, think again — children do not outgrow these health challenges, but actually carry them into adulthood.

Chronic Health Conditions in Kids Are Rising Faster Than You Think

A recent study published in Academic Pediatrics examined how chronic health conditions in children and young adults have changed in the United States from 1999 to 2018. Conducted by researchers from Harvard Medical School, the study focused on conditions that begin in childhood and continue into adulthood.

Their goal was to show how big the problem has become, which conditions are rising the fastest, and how these health burdens affect both children and society at large.1

• Researchers studied a large, diverse group across the country — The study included a nationally representative sample of 236,412 individuals between ages 5 and 25. The data was from the 1999 to 2018 National Health Interview Survey (NHIS). According to News-Medical.Net, the researchers “estimated the annual average increase in chronic conditions (CC) and functional limitations (FL) over time.”2

• Nearly one in three children had a chronic condition by 2018 — The researchers found that the frequency of chronic conditions among children ages 5 to 17 years increased from about 23% in 1999/2000 to over 30% by 2017/2018. Even more concerning, the study estimated that 1.2 million young people with chronic conditions are now entering adulthood each year, carrying these challenges into college, work, and adult life.

• Asthma, ADHD, autism, and prediabetes are leading the increase — Asthma, ADHD (attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder), autism, and prediabetes are the top drivers of this growing problem. These conditions interfere with learning, playing, and building relationships.

• The numbers show steady and consistent growth — According to their findings, ADHD rates jumped by 0.24 percentage points per year, while autism diagnoses went up by 0.13 percentage points annually. Asthma cases climbed by 0.12 percentage points per year, and prediabetes in young adults rose by 0.12 percentage points annually.

While these yearly changes seem small, they build up to massive increases over time. If you have children, this means their schools, sports programs, and healthcare providers are dealing with far more chronic conditions than ever before — and they may not be ready to handle it well.

Low-Income Families Are Being Hit the Hardest

The study found clear inequalities among the children who develop chronic conditions. In particular, less privileged children have a higher risk of these illnesses.3

• Children from families earning below the poverty line are mostly affected — These children had a 3.39 percentage point higher chance of having chronic conditions. Children on public insurance had an 8.63 percentage point higher prevalence compared to those with private insurance.

• Poverty and lack of stable employment are directly tied to poorer health outcomes — Children with unemployed parents had a 7.65 percentage point higher rate of chronic conditions. This makes it clear that poverty and lack of stable employment are directly tied to poorer health outcomes for kids. If you’re facing financial stress, your children are at greater risk, not just because of genetics, but also because of barriers to care and nutrition.

• These conditions lead to physical, emotional, and educational limitations — Children who struggle with these conditions experience speech problems, musculoskeletal pain, and weakness, and emotional challenges like anxiety and depression. These issues make it harder for kids to succeed in school, participate in physical activities, and build friendships.

As children age, these struggles compound, leading to lower job prospects and higher healthcare costs. This means parents need to watch for early warning signs and work proactively to support their child’s development and mental health.

What Are the Other Contributing Factors to Chronic Conditions in Children?

The authors noted that other factors may be affecting disease rates, such as regional differences. Their findings note that children in the Southern U.S. had the highest rates of chronic conditions, while those in the Western region had the lowest. If you’re in a high-risk area, it’s worth taking extra steps to reduce environmental triggers and promote healthy habits.4

• Poor diet, pollution, and stress are major contributors — While the study didn’t dive into microscopic details, it was clear that environmental exposures, chronic stress, and poor diet all contribute to these rising conditions.

For asthma, pollutants and allergens are major triggers. Prediabetes develops from eating too many processed foods and not getting enough movement, which leads to insulin resistance — where your body stops responding properly to insulin, making blood sugar levels rise. ADHD and autism likely also have environmental and dietary factors involved.

• Transitions to adult healthcare are failing — Children and young adults with chronic conditions often lose support when they age out of pediatric care. This makes managing their conditions harder, leading to emergency room visits, missed work, and increased expenses. If you have a teenager with a chronic condition, you need to help them plan and prepare for managing their health as adults.

• Early detection and prevention are key to reducing the burden — The researchers emphasized that treatment is not enough. Parents and pediatricians need to work together to look for early signs like fatigue, changes in behavior, or physical symptoms like wheezing and weight gain.

Addressing these issues early helps stop long-term damage and improves outcomes. Lauren Wisk, assistant professor of medicine at UCLA and the study’s lead author, said:

“Most youth with chronic conditions need to access health and social services for the rest of their lives, but our health system is not set up to successfully move young people from pediatric to adult focused care and so many of these youth are at risk of disengaging with care and experiencing disease exacerbations.

We should invest in assisting these youth in engaging appropriately with healthcare across their lifespan in order to protect their health and well-being, and to facilitate their maximum participation in society with respect to education, vocation, social groups, and community spaces.”5

What’s Triggering the Rising Autism and ADHD Rates?

According to Autism Parenting Magazine, about one in 36 children are now diagnosed with this condition — that’s 241% higher compared to autism rates in 2000.6 As for ADHD, approximately 6% of youth and 2.5% of adults are affected globally. The rise in these disorders is alarming, with evidence pointing to gene-environment interactions as key contributors to their development.7

• The causes of autism are complex — There are both genetic and environmental factors involved. One significant factor is parental chemical intolerance, which is often linked to toxicant-induced loss of tolerance (TILT), where exposure to certain chemicals leads to heightened sensitivity.

• Toxic pesticides, heavy metals and food packaging chemicals are driving autism and ADHD rates — According to one study published in Pediatrics journal, “[G]estational exposures to some neurotoxic and endocrine-disrupting pesticides, including organochlorines, organophosphates, and pyrethroids, increase the chances of an autism diagnosis or autism-related behaviors in children.

Evidence is emerging that other toxic chemicals are associated with autism or autism-related behaviors, notably phthalates, ubiquitous chemicals that cause a decrease in testosterone.”8

• Poor gut health in early life is also a major factor — This disrupts brain development through the gut-brain axis. According to research, children diagnosed with autism or ADHD often lack key gut bacteria like Akkermansia muciniphila, Bifidobacterium and Faecalibacterium. These beneficial microbes are essential for regulating inflammation and producing neurotransmitters that support mood and brain function.9

• Electromagnetic fields (EMFs) are another growing concern — EMFs activate voltage-gated calcium channels (VGCCs), leading to oxidative stress, mitochondrial dysfunction, and inflammation in the brain.

These effects interfere with brain development, particularly in pregnant women and young children, whose developing nervous systems are especially sensitive to environmental stressors. To learn more about this, read “The Invisible Risk Factor of Autism.”

• Nutritional deficiencies often add to these challenges — Diets loaded with processed foods, refined sugars, and inflammatory omega-6 fats like linoleic acid (LA) deprive the body of nutrients critical for brain health. Poor nutrition not only impairs cognitive function but also amplifies the impact of other environmental stressors, creating a compounding effect on brain development.

Childhood Obesity Is Now a Widespread Problem

Childhood obesity poses significant health risks, affecting children’s physical and emotional well-being. It leads to complications like insulin resistance, impaired glucose tolerance and dyslipidemia. If left unaddressed, it leads to more severe health complications like prediabetes, high blood pressure and early mortality.10

• Millions of children worldwide are now obese — More than 340 million children and adolescents are affected worldwide. In the U.S., one in five children and adolescents is obese.11 Among 2- to 19-year-olds, the prevalence of obesity was 19.7% from 2017 to 2020, or 14.7 million individuals affected.12 Early obesity is strongly predictive of obesity in later life, with 90% of children who are obese at age 3 still obese in adolescence.13

• Childhood obesity raises the risk of physical and mental health conditions — These include high blood pressure, Type 2 diabetes, asthma sleep apnea, joint problems, and gallbladder disease. It also takes a mental toll and is associated with an increased risk of anxiety, depression, low self-esteem, social problems, and lower quality of life.

• Four factors account for majority of childhood obesity — One study notes that there are four primary factors that, when combined, account for nearly half of obesity cases in young children. These include lower food security during infancy, early exposure to screens and digital gadgets, not getting adequate sleep and regular consumption of processed foods, including fast food and soda.14

Part of the problem with addressing and resolving childhood obesity is that the nutritional guidance children and their parents get is flawed — the focus is on reducing saturated fats and other whole foods, while promoting vegetable oils and heavily processed, low-fat diets. This triggers a catastrophic cascade of health declines rooted in mitochondrial dysfunction and insulin resistance. To learn more about this, read “Toddler Obesity Is on the Rise.”

The Benefits of Breastfeeding Are Being Sidelined in Favor of Infant Formula

Another notable reason why childhood illnesses are now rampant is that many parents are choosing to bottle-feed their babies, causing them to miss out on the wholesome benefits of breast milk. Thanks to infant formula marketing, our current culture now views breastfeeding as a lifestyle choice rather than a biological norm.

• Societal expectations undermine breastfeeding — In the West, mothers often feel pressured to stop breastfeeding once their child turns 1 year old. It’s often framed as inconvenient or unnecessary to breastfeed a baby once they reach this age. Furthermore, women who extend breastfeeding beyond a year are often seen as “weirdos” or overly attached.

• Breast milk is called “liquid gold” for a reason — Unlike formula, breast milk offers a unique blend of antibodies, immune factors, hormones and stem cells that tailor themselves to the needs of the child. It’s dynamic, adjusting its composition in response to cues from the baby’s saliva and feeding frequency.

• Breastfeeding bolsters your child’s immunity and cognitive health — Breastfed infants have better immune responses, lower risks of respiratory infections and better cognitive development. Studies suggest that breastfed babies often score higher on IQ tests.15

• It’s also associated with a lower risk of being overweight and obese — Not only does exclusive breastfeeding prevent the early introduction of foods that may trigger weight gain, but it also establishes a healthy gut microbiome, which is key to lifelong health.16

• Breastfeeding benefits mothers as well — They have lower risks of postpartum depression, premenopausal cancers, osteoporosis, and other diseases. Breastfeeding is also instrumental in establishing a bond between mother and child.

Absolutely nothing compares to breast milk in terms of nutrition, so if you are a new mother and still lactating, breastfeeding would be the best choice for both you and your child to help them avoid these chronic health conditions from childhood until adulthood. I recommend reading “The Power of Breastfeeding” to learn more about the benefits of breastfeeding.

Fostering Healthy Habits Early in Life Is Key to Preventing Chronic Conditions
The chronic conditions covered by the featured study are driven by poor diet, stress, pollution, and lack of access to healthy habits from the start. If you feel overwhelmed, don’t be. There are strategies to help your child avoid becoming part of these statistics. I’ve put together five steps you use right now to reduce risk and support their long-term health.

1. Clean up your child’s diet and remove inflammatory foods — Eliminate processed foods, seed oils, and anything made with high amounts of processed sugar. Start cooking simple meals at home with animal-based proteins, grass fed butter, ghee, root vegetables, white rice and whole fruits. If your child has gut issues or food sensitivities, start with easily digestible carbs like white rice and whole fruits.

Avoid store-bought sauces and packaged snacks that are filled with chemicals and hidden industrial fats. If you are not sure what’s safe, use this rule — If it comes in a box with marketing on the front, don’t buy it.

2. Reduce exposure to environmental toxins — If you live in a polluted city or near industrial areas, filter your indoor air. Avoid synthetic fragrances, candles and harsh cleaning chemicals. Focus on using simple products — baking soda, vinegar, and natural soap go a long way. If your child has asthma, this step is non-negotiable. Removing environmental irritants gives their lungs a fighting chance.

3. Focus on sleep and stress management — Children need structured sleep routines. Aim for 10 to 12 hours of sleep for younger kids and at least nine hours for teenagers. Reduce their screentime — gadgets must be turned off an hour before bed.

If your child struggles with anxiety or behavioral issues, establish calming rituals like reading together, spending time outdoors, and cutting out high-sugar snacks that spike and crash energy levels. I recommend making sleep a family priority — it resets hormones, lowers cortisol, and allows their bodies to heal.

4. Prioritize safe movement and sunlight — Allow your child to play and spend time outdoors, especially if they have behavioral or mood issues. Light exposure in the morning improves mood, circadian rhythm, and brain function.

Walking, swimming, and gentle play help regulate energy, build strong muscles, and encourage healthy metabolism. Avoid over-scheduled lives packed with indoor screen time. Simpler routines with daily activity outdoors are the foundation for stable mental and physical health.

5. Watch for early warning signs and act quickly — If you notice weight gain, chronic fatigue, skin rashes, or changes in mood and focus, don’t ignore them. These are your body’s warning signals. Address them early with diet changes, detoxifying your environment, and restoring healthy sleep.

If your child has blood sugar issues or you suspect prediabetes, cut processed carbs and introduce balanced meals with protein, fiber, and clean carbs. Prevention is far easier than reversal, and you have control over these daily choices.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) About Chronic Health Conditions in Children

Q: Why are so many kids developing chronic health conditions?

A: Poor diet, stress, pollution, and lack of movement are driving chronic conditions like asthma, ADHD, autism, and prediabetes. Kids today are exposed to processed foods, environmental toxins, and disrupted sleep, all of which raise their risk early in life.

Q: What are early warning signs to watch for in my child?

A: Look out for weight gain, fatigue, mood changes, skin issues, frequent wheezing, and trouble focusing. These are clear signals that your child’s health needs attention.

Q: How does poverty affect my child’s risk of chronic disease?

A: Children in low-income homes are more likely to face chronic conditions due to poor nutrition, lack of safe environments, and limited access to healthcare. Stability and clean food make a big difference.

Q: What are the initial steps I can take to help protect my child’s health?

A: Clean up your child’s diet, reduce environmental toxins, make sleep and stress management a family priority, encourage daily sunlight and movement, and act on early symptoms.

Q: Why does prediabetes matter for kids?

A: Prediabetes leads to full-blown diabetes if ignored, putting your child at risk for heart disease, nerve damage, and kidney failure. Nutritionally balanced, unprocessed meals, eliminating processed sugars, and active play are key prevention tools.

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What does aspirin do in your body to support your T cells?

It creates more T cells to fight cancer
It blocks a substance that slows down your T cells’ activity
Aspirin inhibits a substance in your body that normally hinders T cell movement, allowing them to move freely and attack cancer cells more effectively. Learn more.
It directs T cells to focus only on cancer cells
It provides energy to your T cells for stronger attacks

Have you ever felt persistent pain in your shoulder, elbow, wrist or lower back, especially after engaging in activities that involve repetitive movements? These discomforts might stem from muscle imbalances — where certain muscles become stronger or tighter than their opposing counterparts.

Muscle imbalances disrupt the harmony of your musculoskeletal system, leading to altered movement patterns and increased stress on joints. This imbalance is particularly prevalent in athletes, including those who perform overhead movements, such as those in baseball, tennis, volleyball and water polo.1 However, muscle imbalances affect non-athletes as well — even working at a computer for long hours each day puts you at risk.

No matter the activity, when one side of your body becomes dominant due to repetitive use, the non-dominant side often lags behind in strength and flexibility. Muscle imbalances aren’t just a matter of asymmetry; they’re significant contributors to pain and injury in both athletes and the general population.

Aging doesn’t just mean gaining years; it also affects both mental and physical abilities, especially neuromuscular functions like balance. Balance plays a pivotal role in daily life. It is not just about standing upright; it involves a complex interplay of sensory inputs and neuromuscular control.

Good balance allows you to perform everyday tasks with ease, from walking and climbing stairs to carrying groceries. As balance deteriorates with age, even simple movements will become challenging, leading to a decreased quality of life. It also increases your risk of falls, which leads to severe injuries.

In a comprehensive study conducted at the Mayo Clinic,1 researchers examined how aging affects walking patterns, balance and muscle strength in individuals over the age of 50. They discovered that the ability to stand on one leg, known as unipedal stance, serves as an important indicator of neuromuscular aging and offers valuable insights for developing interventions to support older adults’ mobility, independence and overall well-being.

Assessing Balance Is Key to Understanding Neuromuscular Health in Older Adults

Traditional methods for evaluating neuromuscular aging often include gait analysis and strength measurements. Gait analysis examines walking patterns, while strength tests measure muscle power. However, these methods might not fully capture the subtle changes in balance that indicate early signs of neuromuscular decline.

In contrast, unipedal stance time emerges as a simple yet effective test for assessing neuromuscular health.2 The ability to stand on one leg demands the coordination of multiple sensory systems, including vision, the vestibular system and proprioception. These systems work together to maintain stability and adjust to any shifts in body position.

As individuals age, the efficiency of these sensory inputs and the neuromuscular control required for balance diminishes, leading to shorter durations of unipedal stance. Interestingly, the decline in unipedal stance time is shown to be more pronounced compared to changes in walking patterns or muscle strength. While gait speed and grip strength did decrease with age, they did so at a slower rate than balancing on one leg.

This indicates that unipedal stance time is a more sensitive and reliable indicator of neuromuscular aging. Moreover, unlike gait analysis or strength measurements, which require specialized equipment and trained personnel, balancing on one leg is easily performed anywhere without the need for advanced technology. This accessibility allows for frequent monitoring and early detection of neuromuscular decline.

Reduced Unipedal Stance Duration Linked to Age-Related Neuromuscular Changes

Published in the journal PLOS One,3 the featured study involved participants over the age of 50, who were asked to perform a series of balance tests, including standing on one leg for as long as possible with eyes open. This task was performed on both the dominant and non-dominant leg to capture any asymmetry in balance. During these tests, the researchers recorded unipedal stance duration, which was significantly influenced by age.

According to the results, participants’ unipedal stance time declined by approximately 2.2 seconds per decade on their non-dominant leg and 1.7 seconds on their dominant leg. This rapid reduction highlights how neuromuscular function deteriorates as you grow older. The study also found that the decline in unipedal stance time was consistent across both men and women, despite inherent differences in muscle strength between the sexes. The authors concluded:4

“Unipedal stance time is a valid measure of frailty, independence and fall status, and proves to be a useful tool in identifying patients with peripheral neuropathy.

… The importance of balance, especially in unipedal stance, arises from the fact that it requires multiple sensory inputs and neuromuscular control, in addition to adequate muscle strength. This is why balance on one leg, as demonstrated in our study, undergoes the fastest decline in our healthy cohort, reflecting age-related declines in muscle strength … and in the rapid coordination and integration of data by the central nervous system.”

Moreover, while unipedal stance was the primary measure of neuromuscular aging in this study,5 researchers also examined bipedal stance to provide additional context on age-related stability changes.

During bipedal stance, participants were observed for shifts in their center of pressure (CoP), which increased with age. This increase in CoP movement indicates that even in a more stable two-legged stance, older adults must make more subtle adjustments to maintain their balance.

Poor balance could indicate underlying health problems that require attention. Conditions such as cardiovascular issues, neurological disorders or the side effects of certain medications can impair balance. Recognizing a decline in balance allows for early detection and treatment of these health concerns.

Understanding Age-Related Changes in Muscle Strength

While unipedal stance time showed no significant gender differences, the study6 did reveal differences in strength measures between men and women. Men showed significantly higher grip and knee strength compared to women across all age groups.

However, the rate of age-related strength decline was similar for both sexes, with grip strength decreasing by about 3.7% per decade, while knee strength decreased by about 1.4%.

These findings show that aging affects muscle strength regardless of gender, even though men start with greater baseline strength. This gradual loss of muscle strength impacts daily activities and overall mobility. According to the authors:7

“Muscle strength serves as an additional indicator of muscle quality and a predictor of various health concerns, such as disability and mortality. Unlike level walking or balance tests, maximal muscle strength evaluates the greatest capacity of the muscle, which declines with age. The grip strength test, a simple and reliable measurement has been recognized as a powerful predictor of disability, mortality, and morbidity.

The current study observed a significant decline in grip strength, which decreased at a faster rate than knee strength. This trend aligns with findings from a longitudinal study, where grip strength was reported to decline more rapidly than hip or knee strength. Hence, grip strength serves as a better predictor of musculoskeletal aging than other strength measures.”

Strategies to Maintain Balance and Mobility as You Age

The researchers stress the need for proactive measures to support aging populations.8 One strategy is to incorporate balance exercises into daily workout routines. Activities like yoga, tai chi and specific balance training strengthen the muscles and improve coordination.9 These exercises help maintain the efficiency of your neuromuscular system, making it easier to stay steady on your feet.

Regular balance training also effectively mitigates age-related neuromuscular decline.10 Consistent practice not only improves your brain’s ability to coordinate movements but also enhances muscle strength. This dual benefit means that balance training slows down the natural aging process of the neuromuscular system.

Simple activities also make a big difference when you incorporate them into your daily habits. Try standing on one foot while brushing your teeth, walking heel-to-toe like on a tightrope or practicing standing from a chair without using your hands. These quick activities are easy to integrate into daily routines, significantly improving your balance and supporting your ability to move confidently and independently as you age. Other balancing exercises to try include:

1. Stability ball exercises — Sitting or kneeling on a stability ball challenges your core muscles and balance systems.

2. Ankle strengthening — Strong ankles are crucial for stability. Try writing the alphabet with your foot while seated, or practice rising up on your toes while standing.

3. Dynamic balance exercises — Try walking in different patterns — sideways, backward, or in a figure-eight — to challenge your dynamic balance.

4. Frog stand (Advanced) — This balance exercise involves crouching down and placing your knees on your upper arms while leaning forward to lift your feet off the ground. This position strengthens your core, improves balance and coordination, and enhances overall body awareness. It’s the one I do every day.

Additional Tips to Combat Age-Related Muscle Weakness

In addition to maintaining balance, preserving muscle mass and strength is essential for overall health and independence. Here are four effective strategies to help you maintain and even build muscle as you grow older:

1. Incorporate strength training into your routine — Perform strength training exercises for 20 minutes twice a week on non-consecutive days or 40 minutes once a week. Focus on major muscle groups using weights or resistance bands. Consistent strength training helps reduce the risk of muscle atrophy, enhances your ability to perform daily activities and boosts your metabolism.11

2. Prioritize proper posture — Maintain a straight back, keep your lumbar area relatively flat and slightly protrude your buttocks. Good posture reduces the strain on your muscles and joints, decreases the risk of back pain and promotes better overall muscle function.

3. Stay active throughout the day — Avoid prolonged periods of sitting by standing up and moving around every 15 minutes. Simple actions like walking, stretching or doing light exercises significantly improve your muscle health and reduce the risk of muscle loss.

4. Focus on functional movements — Perform exercises that mimic real-life movements like squats, lunges and lifting. Functional movements build strength in ways that support daily activities. By practicing these types of exercises, you strengthen not only isolated muscles but also improve coordination, stability, and balance, making everyday tasks easier and safer.

5. Optimize your protein intake — This macronutrient is important for muscle maintenance and building muscles. For most adults, the ideal protein intake is 15% of daily calories. Make sure one-third of your total protein intake is collagen to ensure you’re getting a healthy amino acid ratio.

A U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) report on honeybee colonies reveals a troubling trend that could have far-reaching consequences for your food supply and the environment.1 Varroa mites have emerged as the primary threat to honeybee populations, affecting a staggering 54.8% of colonies during April through June 2024.

These parasitic mites weaken bees, making them more susceptible to diseases and reducing their ability to survive harsh conditions. The impact of varroa mites on your local ecosystem cannot be overstated, as they contribute significantly to colony losses and pose a severe challenge to beekeepers nationwide. Understanding the severity of this problem and others facing honeybees is crucial, as it directly affects pollination services essential for many crops you rely on daily.

Colony Collapse Disorder: A Persistent Threat

While there’s a glimmer of hope with a 34% decrease in colonies lost to colony collapse disorder (CCD) symptoms from January through March 2024 compared to the same period in 2023, the issue remains a significant concern.2 CCD, characterized by the sudden disappearance of adult bees from the hive, continues to puzzle researchers and beekeepers alike.

The loss of 70,650 colonies to CCD symptoms in just three months highlights the ongoing struggle to maintain healthy bee populations.3 This mysterious phenomenon not only impacts honey production but also threatens the pollination of countless plants in your garden and local ecosystem. The reduction in CCD cases is encouraging, but it’s clear that more research and preventive measures are needed to protect your food security and biodiversity.

The USDA report paints a picture of constant flux in honeybee populations, with significant losses and additions throughout the year. From January through March 2024, beekeepers lost 396,820 colonies, representing a 15% decline. However, they also added 404,100 colonies during the same period, barely offsetting the losses.

This cycle of loss and renewal underscores the challenges faced by beekeepers in maintaining stable populations. The highest number of colonies lost in 2023 was during April through June, with 378,190 colonies lost.4 Pesticides were also named as a leading stressor in about 10% of colonies from January through June.5

These fluctuations have a direct impact on your local agriculture and ecosystems, as they affect the availability of pollinators for crops and wild plants alike. Understanding this dynamic is crucial for appreciating the efforts required to sustain honeybee populations and the vital services they provide.

Neonicotinoids: A Silent Killer in Your Garden

Common pesticides in your garden are contributing to the alarming decline in honeybee populations. One study shed light on how neonicotinoids, particularly thiacloprid, have long-lasting effects on honeybees even when exposed during their larval stage.6 Thiacloprid, once considered less toxic to bees than other neonicotinoids, is now under scrutiny for its significant impact on bee health.

The research reveals that exposure to sublethal concentrations of thiacloprid during the larval phase leads to reduced survival rates in adult bees. The exposed bees showed increased sugar-water consumption without corresponding weight gain, suggesting a disruption in their energy metabolism.7

This means that bees exposed to thiacloprid as larvae struggle to maintain their energy balance as adults, impacting their ability to forage and contribute to the colony’s survival.

Gut Microbiome Is a Key Player in Bee Health

Your gut health is crucial for your overall well-being, and the same is true for honeybees. The study uncovered that early-life exposure to thiacloprid significantly alters the gut microbiota of adult honeybees.8 On the first day after emergence, bees exposed to thiacloprid showed a dramatic reduction in gut microbial diversity. This disruption in the delicate balance of beneficial bacteria could have far-reaching consequences for bee health.

A healthy gut microbiome plays vital roles in digestion, nutrient absorption, metabolism and immunity. By disturbing this ecosystem, thiacloprid indirectly weakens bees’ defenses against pathogens and reduces their ability to extract nutrients from their food efficiently.

While the study found that the microbial diversity seemed to stabilize by the sixth day after emergence, the initial disruption during a critical period of development could have lasting effects on the bees’ overall health and resilience.9

From Hive to Human: The Ripple Effect of Pesticide Use

You might wonder why the health of honeybees should matter to you. The answer lies in the intricate web of ecological relationships that sustain our food systems. Honeybees are primary pollinators, playing a crucial role in global ecosystems and agricultural biodiversity. Their decline doesn’t just mean less honey; it threatens the very foundations of our food security.

Even pesticides considered “less toxic” have long-term effects that disrupt the delicate balance of nature. When you use neonicotinoids in your garden or purchase produce grown with these pesticides, you’re unknowingly contributing to a chain reaction that weakens bee colonies.

This, in turn, affects crop yields and the overall health of our ecosystems. So, your individual actions, even at the level of choosing garden products, have far-reaching consequences for the environment and, ultimately, your own well-being.

The Hidden Toll of Industrial Agriculture on Honeybees

In intensive agricultural areas, honeybees also face a rollercoaster of feast and famine as crops bloom and wither. During food shortages between mass flowerings, researchers found that worker bees start foraging at a younger age — essentially growing up too fast.10 This premature maturation comes at a steep cost, shortening the bees’ overall lifespan.

By analyzing the life histories of over 1,035 individual bees across different landscapes, scientists uncovered how food scarcity pushes young bees to become foragers earlier than normal.11 While this helps the colony gather resources in the short-term, it means each worker bee lives a shorter life.

Over time, this accelerated life cycle threatens the survival of entire colonies. The findings reveal an invisible toll that modern farming practices take on bee populations, even when the effects aren’t immediately obvious. Understanding these hidden stressors and embracing alternatives like regenerative agriculture are crucial for protecting the pollinators your food supply depends on.

A Lifeline in the Agricultural Desert

Amid the sea of cropland, patches of wilderness provide a vital refuge for bees. The study, published in Science of The Total Environment, found that areas with more semi-natural habitats like meadows, hedgerows and woodlands helped buffer honeybees against the harsh effects of food shortages.12 In landscapes with abundant natural areas, bees were able to delay foraging and live longer lives overall.

This protective effect was especially pronounced during times of scarcity between crop blooms. Bees with access to diverse wild plants maintained more normal life cycles, avoiding the premature aging seen in more barren agricultural zones.

These oases of biodiversity are critical for supporting pollinator health. Even small increases in natural habitat around farms could make a big difference for bee populations. By preserving and restoring these areas, you can help create a more hospitable environment for the bees that your food system relies on.

The Delicate Balance of a Bee’s Lifespan

The researchers uncovered an intriguing trade-off in bee development: workers that start foraging too early or too late tend to have shorter foraging careers overall. The sweet spot appears to be around 14 days old — bees that began foraging at this age had the longest productive lifespans as foragers.13

This delicate balance likely relates to the bees’ physiology. Those pushed to forage too young may not be physically ready for the demanding job. On the flip side, bees that delay foraging for too long may have limited time left in their natural lifespan. Understanding this optimal timing could help beekeepers and farmers better support healthy colonies.

The presence of diverse natural habitats seems to help bees hit this developmental “sweet spot” more often. By creating and supporting an environment that allows for more normal bee development, you can support more robust and resilient pollinator populations in your area.

Hope for Reversing Honeybee Decline

While the findings paint a sobering picture of honeybee health in many industrial agriculture landscapes, they also point to achievable solutions. The study showed that even modest increases in semi-natural habitat around crops have significant benefits for bee populations.14

Simple changes like planting hedgerows, establishing wildflower meadows or leaving some land fallow can make a big difference. These practices not only support bees but also provide habitat for other beneficial insects and wildlife. As a consumer, you can support these efforts by choosing products from small farms that prioritize biodiversity.

You can also create pollinator-friendly spaces in your own yard or community. By advocating for and implementing these changes, you have the power to help reverse the decline of bees and other crucial pollinators.

Take Action to Protect Bees and Your Health

Armed with this knowledge, you have the ability to make a difference. Start by avoiding the use of neonicotinoids and other synthetic pesticides in your own garden. Opt for organic, regenerative gardening methods and support small farmers who practice bee-friendly agriculture. When shopping for plants, ask nurseries if their plants have been treated with neonicotinoids and choose untreated options.

Remember, protecting bee health is ultimately about protecting your own health and the health of future generations. By making conscious choices, you’re not just helping to preserve bee populations; you’re also reducing your exposure to potentially harmful chemicals.

The research on how thiacloprid affects bee metabolism and gut health serves as a warning sign for human health as well. As you work to create a safer environment for bees, you’re also creating a healthier world for yourself and your loved ones. Every small action counts in the fight to preserve our pollinators and ensure a truly sustainable future for all.

Colony Renovation and Conservation Efforts

Meanwhile, despite the challenges, there are signs of proactive measures being taken to strengthen honeybee populations. Colony renovation is a one technique used by beekeepers to maintain and improve the health and productivity of their honeybee colonies.

This process typically involves one of two main approaches: requeening or introducing new bees. Requeening is the practice of replacing an existing queen bee with a new, often younger and more vigorous queen. This helps improve the colony’s genetics, increase egg-laying rates and enhance disease resistance.

Alternatively, beekeepers may introduce new bees through nucleus colonies (small, starter colonies) or packages (boxes containing worker bees and a queen). These methods allow beekeepers to strengthen weak colonies, replace lost bees or start entirely new hives.

By regularly renovating their colonies, beekeepers address issues such as declining populations, poor queen performance or genetic weaknesses, ultimately ensuring the long-term viability and productivity of their apiaries.

According to the USDA report, from April through June 2024, 521,790 colonies were renovated, representing 19% of the total.15 This process helps maintain genetic diversity and colony health, important factors in building resilience against threats like varroa mites and diseases.

As a consumer and member of your local community, supporting these conservation efforts through informed choices and advocacy makes a significant difference. By understanding the importance of these renovation efforts, you contribute to the long-term sustainability of honeybee populations and the ecosystems they support.

Dementia is not a normal part of aging, contrary to what some people believe. In fact, many healthy individuals live their entire lives without developing any form of dementia — yet today, more and more people are gradually experiencing poor cognitive function as they age.

According to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC),1 the number of dementia cases among adults 65 years and older is expected to balloon to 14 million by 2060 — that’s nearly a threefold increase from 10 years ago. This makes it even more important to implement strategies that may help protect against this disease.

In August 2024, The Lancet journal2 released a report detailing new evidence about dementia care and prevention, identifying some modifiable risk factors. According to the report, sensory impairments, even those that are mild to moderate, are associated with developing dementia later in life.

Hearing Loss Identified as a Risk Factor for Dementia

Hearing loss or “presbycusis” is one of the risk factors listed by the featured report. An estimated 20% of people worldwide suffer from this condition, and of those affected, 62% are around 50 years old or older.3

The study authors looked at five meta-analyses and determined that all found a link between hearing loss and dementia. The meta-analyses also indicate that as hearing loss progresses, the dementia risk becomes higher, saying that “the magnitude of this risk increase varied between studies, from a 4% increase to a 24% increase in dementia risk per 10 dB [decibels] decrease in hearing ability.”4

A separate review published in the Neuroscientist journal5 looked at the sensory impairments associated with dementia, and pinpointed several mechanisms by which hearing loss may lead to cognitive decline. These include brain changes in the hearing pathway and mental overload that occurs when a hard-of-hearing person strains to understand what’s being said. According to the researchers:

“We have suggested that increased activity in medial temporal lobe mechanisms for auditory cognition during real-world listening, acting to compensate for peripheral hearing loss, might augment the early pathologic mechanisms for AD [Alzheimer’s disease] in the same areas.

Other rodent work has shown that increased external auditory stimulation improves spatial cognition and decreases amyloid deposition in the auditory cortex and hippocampus in a genetic mouse model of AD.”6

The Lancet Adds Vision Loss to Its List of Modifiable Risk Factors
The Lancet report also included vision loss as a sensory impairment associated with dementia. This addition was done after they acquired “considerable new evidence” connecting these two conditions. Based on their findings, nearly 2% of dementia cases were linked to having untreated vision loss in a person’s senior years.7 The study authors explained:

“This evidence includes a meta-analysis of 14 prospective cohort studies, with follow-up of 3.7 to 14.5 years, including 6,204,827 older adults who were cognitively intact at baseline, of whom 171,888 developed dementia. Vision loss was associated with a pooled RR [relative risk] for dementia of 1.47.”8

In 2023, a review published in the International Journal of Molecular Sciences noted that glaucoma,9 the second-leading cause of blindness worldwide, shares some biomarkers with Alzheimer’s disease.

According to the researchers, “[t]he pathophysiological process underlying AD is in many aspects similar to that of glaucoma. Numerous epidemiological studies using immunohistochemical and animal data support the link between the two diseases.”10

The ‘Use It or Lose It’ Principle Applies to Brain Tissue

In an article published in The New York Times,11 the researchers provided a simple explanation as to why sensory impairments may be associated with dementia, and it has something to do with how you use your brain tissue.

Basically, if you have sensory loss, there’s less input coming into your brain. As a result, your brain undergoes less stimulation, which can lead to more atrophy — this means you either use your brain tissue or you lose it. As reported in The New York Times:

“The area of the brain that processes auditory information is close to the region most affected by Alzheimer’s disease, suggesting there may be an anatomical connection. Visual information is fed into another part of the brain, but how we use that information activates many different regions.

‘As you’ve reduced activation of certain areas of the brain, you get faster rates of atrophy there to some degree,’ said Dr. Frank Lin, a professor of otolaryngology at the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine. ‘Which you can imagine has cascading effects on other areas of brain function and structure, as well.’”12

Sensory impairments during adulthood can also lead to social withdrawal, as many people who struggle with these disorders tend to stop engaging with others. This increases loneliness, which is also a risk factor for dementia.

Dr. Gill Livingston, a professor of psychiatry at University College London and the lead author of The Lancet report, shares that people who are in the early stages of dementia may also develop symptoms faster when they lose their sense of hearing or vision. This is because they typically use up more brain power when trying to recognize blurry vision or garbled sounds, leaving fewer resources for everyday memory and cognition.13

She also highlights the importance of addressing these sensory impairments early on, to reduce your dementia risk. Dementia has currently no known treatment or cure, which is why understanding the link between these two modifiable risk factors and dementia may help researchers develop new management or treatment strategies.

“Some people will still develop dementia, but if they address these risks they should have a longer, healthier life and will not have dementia for such a long time,” Livingston explains. “It’s never too early or too late to take action, with opportunities to make an impact at any stage of life.”14

Excessive Noise Can Lead to Hearing Loss

Your sense of hearing can deteriorate naturally and may even start during early adulthood. There are numerous factors that may lead to this condition, although in some people, the deterioration occurs faster, possibly due to genetics or, more commonly, constant exposure to noise and loud sounds.

“Isolation and Dementia — Why We Should Protect Our Ears,” a documentary from the German broadcaster, Deutsche Welle (DW), embedded above, tackles the topic of hearing damage brought on by noise pollution. It highlights some of the day-to-day situations wherein people are inevitably exposed to excessive amounts of noise — working in nightclubs, busy kitchens and even doing landscape work, and how it has affected their health.

Thomas Sünder, a 49-year-old who worked as a full-time DJ, shares how his health gradually deteriorated after being exposed to over 100 decibels of continuous noise and music every night. He suddenly collapsed due to a severe vertigo attack in the middle of a gig. Soon after, he experienced tinnitus (a ringing sound in the ear), followed by sudden hearing loss.

“I woke up and suddenly felt like I had cotton in my ear. But there was none, and everything was muffled on one side,” he said. As a result, he can no longer stand staying in places with too much noise. Even while wearing custom ear plugs for protection, he says the noise in the club is still unbearable. “It’s so loud that my body is reacting and I’m nervous about my ears, because my ears are already my weak point and it makes me super uncomfortable,” he shares.

Sünder’s condition isn’t an isolated case. In fact, more than 1 billion people worldwide are now at high risk of hearing loss due to constant exposure to noise pollution.15 And when hearing loss occurs, brain deterioration follows.

Dr. Bernhard Junge-Hülsing, an ear, nose, and throat specialist, explains that your brain deteriorates faster if you can’t hear well. It also deteriorates when you’re not interacting with others or are not participating in life. As explained in the documentary:

“Our auditory center works like a muscle that needs to be trained. New auditory impressions cause a constant adjustment in the brain. However, this means that if the auditory system is no longer activated with new impulses, the ‘muscle’ becomes paralyzed. This could even lead to dementia.”

Using Hearing Aids May Help Protect Your Cognitive Health

Sünder has since quit being a DJ and is now working as a hearing aid acoustician in Hamburg, helping other people who are also dealing with hearing loss. He also assists people in finding the appropriate hearing restorative devices to improve their hearing. With modern technology now coming up with better designs and more sophisticated modifications, there could soon be more efficient ways for these devices to address functional hearing loss.

In the U.S., around 38 million adults are dealing with hearing loss; 29 million of them could benefit from using hearing aids.16 What’s more, studies have found that using these tools may help with brain health, protecting against the onset of dementia.

A 2023 meta-analysis published in the journal JAMA Neurology found that using hearing restorative devices led to a 19% decrease in risk factors related to cognitive decline, and a 3% improvement in cognitive test scores.17

Similar findings were seen during a three-year, multicenter, randomized controlled trial, dubbed the Aging and Cognitive Health Evaluation in Elders (ACHIEVE) study.18 They found that in populations who are at high risk of cognitive decline, those who wore hearing restorative devices for three years had less cognitive decline versus those who didn’t use these tools. The researchers concluded:

“Results from the ACHIEVE study add to the growing evidence base that suggests addressing modifiable risk factors for cognitive decline and dementia could be impactful in reducing the future global burden of dementia.

Based on evidence from the ACHIEVE study, hearing loss may be a particularly important global public health target for dementia prevention efforts given that hearing loss is highly prevalent among older adults and is treatable with an established intervention (i.e., hearing aids and related support services).”19

Other Strategies to Protect Your Sense of Hearing

Prevention is always better than treatment after the fact and, in the case of hearing loss, is particularly important. This is because, as the featured documentary mentions, your sense of hearing does not regenerate, unlike your other organs. It’s crucial to take the necessary measures to protect your ears, to reduce your risk of hearing loss and avoid the need for hearing aids in the first place.

Protecting your ears from loud noises is one strategy. If you’re prone to unsafe listening practices, such as using earbuds or headphones at high volumes or always frequenting loud entertainment venues (like concerts), your risk for noise-induced hearing loss increases.20

Hence, a commonsense approach is to practice safe listening habits and taking the necessary precautions when going to loud environments, such as wearing protective earplugs. This is particularly important if exposure to loud noises is part of your daily routine.

It’s also a good idea to take regular listening breaks from using personal audio devices to give your ears a rest. For more tips in protecting your ears from noise, read my article, “The Damaging Impact of Noise on Your Health.”

I also recommend getting proper nourishment to keep your ears healthy. A 2023 study published in PLOS Biology21 found that plant-based compounds called phytosterols, which are similar in structure to cholesterol, may help improve the function of your outer hair cells in the inner ear, helping amplify sounds. According to the researchers:

“Our findings point towards the importance of cholesterol homeostasis in the inner ear as an innovative therapeutic strategy in preventing and/or delaying hearing loss.”22

Nutrients That Nourish Your Eyes

As for your vision, remember that the health of your eyes largely depends on your lifestyle; one important aspect that you need to take care of is your diet. Providing your eyes with the proper nourishment can go a long way toward keeping them healthy well into your senior years.

Carotenoids like lutein, zeaxanthin and meso-zeaxanthin are plant compounds with potent antioxidant qualities. They protect your macula, the part of your retina that’s responsible for your vision, from blue light and harmful ultraviolet (UV) light from the sun and other light sources. Your body cannot produce these nutrients, which is why you need to get them from your diet. Some of the best sources include:

Green leafy vegetables like spinach, kale and broccoli
Orange- and yellow-colored fruits and vegetables like squash and bell peppers
Eggs from free-range, pastured hens (choose those with bright orange yolks, which indicate elevated levels of lutein and zeaxanthin)

However, there’s another valuable antioxidant that’s far superior to these — astaxanthin. Previous studies have supported its protective effects against eye-related disorders, such as cataracts and age-related macular degeneration (ARMD),23 which is why many researchers believe it to be the most powerful antioxidant ever discovered for eye health.

Astaxanthin easily crosses into the tissues of your eye and exerts its effects safely and with more potency than any of the other carotenoids, without adverse reactions. Specifically, astaxanthin has been shown to ameliorate or prevent light-induced damage, photoreceptor cell damage,24 ganglion cell damage and damage to the neurons of the inner retinal layers.

Apart from its positive effects on vision health, a 2024 review published in the journal Nutrients also found that astaxanthin may have profound benefits for your brain and may protect against neurodegeneration:25

“AST [astaxanthin] has the potential to improve cognitive function, facilitate neuroprotection, and slow neurodegeneration. This claim is made based on the established positive effects of AST on different branches of memory and response time, as well as the implications of work utilizing biomarkers in human populations.”

Avoid Linoleic Acid and Blue Light to Protect Your Vision

Polyunsaturated fats (PUFAs) like linoleic acid (LA) can severely damage your vision — and your overall health, for that matter — which is why it’s crucial to ignore the mainstream advice to consume seed oils or vegetable oils, which are loaded with these harmful fats. In fact, I believe that LA is the most destructive ingredient in your diet and is largely responsible for the epidemic of modern diseases that are rampant today.

LA is found in virtually every processed food, including fast foods, restaurant foods and even salad dressings. Seemingly healthy food like chicken and pork are also be loaded with LA, unless they’ve been raised on special low-PUFA diets. For more information about this topic, I recommend reading my article, “Linoleic Acid — The Most Destructive Ingredient in Your Diet.”

I also advise avoiding blue light, particularly from digital devices, as it can trigger eye strain and contribute to the development of ARMD. As explained in one recent study:26

“High exposure to blue light triggers visual discomfort in the ocular surface of the cornea (digital eye strain), disruption of circadian rhythms, increased insulin resistance, increased affective disorders and even increased incidence of cancer pathologies.

Therefore, it is possible that the effects of overexposure to blue light on the retina by using these devices may contribute to a higher incidence of pathological changes in the retina, such as AMD.”

Sensory Impairments Are Just One Risk Factor

The bottom line is that aging is not tantamount to developing dementia. There are ways to protect your cognitive health and keep your mind sharp even as you reach your golden years. I recommend making the necessary changes to your day-to-day habits, geared towards improving these modifiable risk factors. As mentioned by The Lancet:

“Overall, around 45% of cases of dementia are potentially preventable by addressing the 14 modifiable risk factors at different stages during the life course.”27

For example, smoking and excessive alcohol consumption are two risk factors that can be immediately avoided. Physical inactivity can be addressed by implementing a regular exercise routine. Depression, also a risk factor, can be avoided through socialization and by implementing stress-busting techniques, such as meditation and mindfulness, and by doing the Emotional Freedom Techniques (EFT).

Lastly, make sure to consume a balanced diet composed of high-quality, whole foods, and avoid processed foods, seed oils and junk foods that contribute to diseases like diabetes and obesity.

“Healthy lifestyles that involve regular exercise, not smoking, cognitive activity in midlife (including outside formal education) and avoiding excess alcohol can not only lower dementia risk but may also push back dementia onset,” Livingston said.

“So, if people do develop dementia, they are likely to live less years with it. This has huge quality of life implications for individuals as well as cost-saving benefits for societies.”28

Mushrooms have long been renowned not just for the impressive benefits they offer, but also for the interesting flavors and textures they add to your meals. You may be well-acquainted with common varieties like Crimini, Portobello and shiitake, but have you ever tried exotic ones, like lion’s mane?

Lion’s mane mushroom has been making headlines recently, with some even calling it the “next superfood”1 due to its wholesome health advantages. You’ll be pleased to know that beyond its quirky, pompom-like appearance, it can offer an array of benefits, particularly for your nerves, brain health and more.

Basic Facts About Lion’s Mane

Most commonly found in East Asia, lion’s mane (Hericium erinaceus) stands out from other mushroom species because it doesn’t have a cap, gills and a stem — instead, it’s big, shaggy and rather bizarre-looking, with long, white dangling strands that look like a lion’s mane, hence its name. Its main body is thick and compact, but slightly spongy. You’ll often see it growing on the trunks of dead hardwood trees.2,3,4

Also called bearded tooth mushroom,5 lion’s mane earned the distinction “the smart mushroom” for its potential benefits for your brain.6 However, its benefits go beyond that. In a Yahoo! News article,7 nutritional health coach Georgi Grogan comments:

“There’s a lot of anecdotal evidence to suggest it [lion’s mane] can help to reduce anxiety [and] depression, and also boost the digestive tract with its antibiotic and antiaging properties.”

The benefits of lion’s mane have been recognized for centuries, particularly in traditional Chinese and Japanese medicine, where it was used to help ease gastrointestinal disorders and spleen problems, treat liver and kidney diseases, and regulate heart health. Meanwhile, the indigenous populations in North America used lion’s mane as a preventive measure against bleeding.8

The Neuroprotective Effects of Lion’s Mane

Recently, lion’s mane has been recognized for its potential benefits to your nervous system and brain health, with several studies highlighting its neurocognitive, neuroprotective and neurotrophic properties. Lion’s mane stimulates nerve growth factor (NGF) production — this protein helps promote the growth and survival of your neurons.9 Having optimal neural connections improves your cognitive functions, including memory and concentration.

In one review published in the journal Neuroscience and Biobehavioral Reviews,10 researchers investigated the role of mushrooms on neurocognition and mood. They found that elderly patients who are dealing with mild cognitive impairment experienced improvements in cognitive function after taking a lion’s mane mushroom supplement for several weeks.

Along with the cognitive benefits, there were also indications of improved kidney function, such as “changes in levels of circulating electrolytes (Na and K), and a reduction in creatinine” among the patients.11 The researchers noted that lion’s mane was the only mushroom that resulted in these cognitive and mood benefits; however, these effects were only seen in older age groups, at high doses and long durations.12

A separate analysis published in the International Journal of Molecular Sciences highlighted the neuroprotective and neurotrophic effects of lion’s mane supplementation, noting that it has “promising potential as an excellent neuroprotective agent, capable of stimulating nerve growth factor release, regulating inflammatory processes, reducing oxidative stress, and safeguarding nerve cells from apoptosis.”13

The authors note that the beneficial compounds in lion’s mane, mainly terpenoids and polyketides like erinacines and hericenones, were responsible for these effects, as they have “antioxidative, antidiabetic, anticancer, anti-inflammatory, and hypolipidemic properties.”14

Researchers Identify Lion’s Mane’s Brain-Boosting Mechanism of Action

In 2023, researchers from the University of Queensland identified the active compound that’s responsible for lion’s mane’s effect on nerve growth and memory.15 According to Frederic Meunier, one of the study authors:16

“Laboratory tests measured the neurotrophic effects of compounds isolated from Hericium erinaceus on cultured brain cells, and surprisingly we found that the active compounds promote neuron projections, extending and connecting to other neurons.

Using super-resolution microscopy, we found the mushroom extract and its active components largely increase the size of growth cones, which are particularly important for brain cells to sense their environment and establish new connections with other neurons in the brain.”

They found that the compound hericene A acts as a potent memory enhancer by promoting neuritogenesis (formation of neurites, tiny projections that extend from the cell body of a neuron) both in vitro and in vivo, and even in very low concentrations. The researchers said:17

“To the best of our knowledge, our study is the first to identify a pro-BDNF signaling-enhancing activity for H. erinaceus and to identify hericene A as an active component for this neurotrophic function in vitro and in vivo.

[W]e suggest that the administration of hericene A from H. erinaceus may be useful to ameliorate brain function and disorder-related pathologies in in vivo neurodegenerative disease models. Although further studies are required to test this hypothesis, our report represents the first step on exploring the potential nootrophic benefits from hericene A compounds isolated from the mushroom H. erinaceus.”

In a report published on ScienceDaily, Ramon Martinez-Marmol, a coauthor of the study, highlights the importance of this discovery, saying it hold potential in “applications that could treat and protect against neurodegenerative cognitive disorders such as Alzheimer’s disease.”18

Ergothioneine — Another Longevity Powerhouse in Lion’s Mane

A sulfur-containing amino acid found in mushrooms, ergothioneine is another standout nutrient that not only promotes brain health but overall longevity, because of its antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, antimutagenic and cytoprotectant properties.

Ergothioneine helps reduce cellular damage by eliminating harmful free radicals — its antioxidant properties are actually similar to that of glutathione.19 What’s more, it accumulates in tissues and organs after ingestion, helping minimize and prevent oxidative damage in those tissues over a long period of time.20

As for its benefits for cognitive health, one study published in the Free Radical Biology and Medicine says that having low levels of ergothioneine in the body can increase the risk of neurodegenerative disorders, including dementia, cognitive impairment and Parkinson’s disease. It can also lead to other age-related diseases like cardiovascular disease and eye disease. According to the authors:21

“ET [ergothioneine] is likely to be neuroprotective by a range of mechanisms in vivo. Since complex multifactorial mechanisms contribute to human neurodegenerative and other age-related diseases, this ability to act by several cytoprotective mechanisms can be expected to enhance the efficacy of ET in ameliorating the risk of these diseases.”

According to one study, lion’s mane and oyster mushrooms had the highest ergothioneine levels among seven mushroom varieties that were tested,22 so adding these into your meals is one of the best ways to boost your levels of this longevity nutrient. If you want to learn more about ergothioneine, read my article, “This Mushroom Compound Is a Longevity Powerhouse.”

The Benefits of Lion’s Mane Go Beyond Brain Health

Lion’s mane may also benefit your gut health, as it was found to be a potent prebiotic to help your good gut bacteria thrive. According to Grogan:

“Due to their beta-glucan polysaccharide component, lion’s mane mushrooms are considered a ‘functional food’ that can act as a prebiotic. Put simply, they may help your gut flora (and good bacteria) to flourish while potentially limiting the growth of bad bacteria like H. pylori.”

Helicobacter pylori is a common type of bacteria found in your stomach. It attacks your stomach lining, leading to inflammation and damaging the tissues and your duodenum, the first section of your small intestine. H. pylori can also lead to the formation of peptic ulcers, which are painful sores that form on the upper part of your digestive tract.23

According to a review published in the Journal of Applied and Natural Science,24 animal subjects that were given an aqueous lion’s mane extract had more free mucus in their GI tract, meaning they had better gastroprotection. The mucus acts as a shield that protects the lining from damaging substances, including H. pylori.

But lion’s mane has more to offer beyond your brain and gut — It’s also been associated with helping improve other areas of health. A 2024 review highlighted some of the body-wide effects of lion’s mane, such as:25

Easing depression and anxiety — In one animal study,26 test subjects that were exhibiting symptoms of depression were given lion’s mane orally every day. They found that the mushroom had a “therapeutic potential for treating depression.”

Boosting immune health — Lion’s mane offers bioactive compounds that may promote immunity. According to the researchers, “Mushroom-derived beta-glucans are well-known for their potent immunomodulatory properties, surpassing other types in terms of their ability to affect immune and inflammatory responses.”27

Promoting heart health — Mushrooms offer compounds that help inhibit lipid oxidation, demonstrating an antihyperlipidemic effect. They also contain L-ergothioneine, an amino acid with antioxidant and anti-inflammatory properties, helping boost cardiovascular health.

Helping manage Type 2 diabetes — In one animal study,28 diabetic rats that were given lion’s mane extract had increased serum insulin and reduced glucose levels. It also helped improve the activity of free radical scavenging enzymes.

Reducing cancer risk — Erinacine, another bioactive compound found in lion’s mane, may have antitumor effects, potentially triggering cancer cell death, particularly among gastric cancer cells.

Where to Find Lion’s Mane Mushrooms

While lion’s mane mushrooms are mostly well-known in Asian countries, they grow in North America and Europe as well. In the U.S., you may see them thriving on dead or dying maple, oak or beech trees. According to the Mycelium Society, you can forage for lion’s mane in the late summer, fall and winter — it depends on your location:

“In the southeast, lion’s mane is foraged in winter, while in the northeast, it is found in autumn. The season ends as soon as temperatures drop below 20 [degrees] F, and there are hard frosts.”29

However, don’t be so quick to start gathering lion’s mane — there are areas where foraging mushrooms is prohibited. If it’s allowed in your area, make sure to bring an expert who can help you identify the mushrooms before you pick them. This is particularly important if you are by yourself. To help you identify, harvest and store lion’s mane, here are some pointers, according to an article in CNET:30

“You’ll know it’s ripe by feeling the mushroom. If it’s spongy and soft, you’re good to go. Take a knife to remove the mushroom while leaving the roots. When you return home, cook the mushrooms immediately or store them in a paper bag in your fridge for up to three days,”

But how does this mushroom fare in terms of flavor? Apparently, lion’s mane has a “hearty and satiating” taste; Pamela Smith, RDN, a registered dietitian and the founder of Shaping America’s Plate, describes its sweet flavor to be similar to that of shellfish like scallops, lobster meat or crabmeat.31 When grated, it looks similar to lump crab meat.

Lion’s mane is spongy, which is why it’s so great at soaking up flavors. Simply sauté it in a bit of butter, salt and pepper for an easy side dish. You can also use it to make crab cakes or fish stew. It also works as a replacement for shredded chicken meat, like in pot pies, casseroles or even pasta dishes.

If your area does not allow foraging for mushrooms, you can try checking specialty stores to see if they stock this type. You can also buy lion’s mane in supplement form, if you’re after the benefits.

Mushrooms Are a Superfood, so Add Them to Your Repertoire

Remember that lion’s mane is just one variety that can offer superb benefits. In fact, mushrooms in general are considered superfoods because of their impressive nutrient profile. According to Smith, they are a potent source of B vitamins like biotin and niacin, glutathione and other antioxidants that protect against chronic diseases.32

I highly recommend adding mushrooms to your nutritional plan as they are an excellent addition to nearly any meal. However, it is crucial to choose organically grown mushrooms as fungi easily absorb air and soil contaminants. Growing your own is also an excellent and far safer option than foraging for wild mushrooms.

Aside from lion’s mane, other mushrooms that can offer health-boosting advantages include shiitake, pine mushrooms, oyster mushrooms, porcinis, king boletes, chanterelles and enokitake.33 Each of these have a distinct flavor profile, making them a versatile addition to various dishes — try a few and have fun cooking them in your kitchen!

Editor’s Note: This article is a reprint. It was originally published February 23, 2017.

People think of time as moving along a fixed linear pathway, but in reality, time, including how fast or slow it moves, is all a matter of perception. This is why watching a movie you love feels like it flies by, while to another person who finds the movie boring, it moves tediously slow.

Other peculiarities have also been observed, such as how time moves faster as you get older and it’s possible to lose track of time entirely if you’re engrossed in a task. Likewise, when French geologist Michele Siffre conducted an isolation experiment in the 1960s, it showed that our perception of time changes depending on our circumstances.

He lived in a dark cave, alone, for two months, but when his team came to get him, he thought he’d only stayed for 35 days.1 Further, when he counted off an estimation of 120 seconds while living in the cave (via a phone that only worked one way), he counted for a full five minutes.2

In an interview with Cabinet magazine, Siffre said, “I psychologically experienced five real minutes as though they were two … There was a very large perturbation in my sense of time … My psychological time had compressed by a factor of two.”3

‘Time Doesn’t Exist Outside of Our Own Experience of It’

It’s interesting to note that when Siffre was asked what he thought caused the dramatic disconnect between actual time and his perceived psychological time, he said:4

“That’s a big question that I’ve been investigating for 40 years. I believe that when you are surrounded by night — the cave was completely dark, with just a light bulb — your memory does not capture the time. You forget.”

In some ways, what he experienced is similar to what happens when you’re immersed in an activity you love and suddenly realize you lost track of time. In The Atlantic, senior editor James Hamblin, M.D., wrote:5

“We conceptualize time through metaphors that project it along a straight line — before and after, long and short, earlier and later — as a function of how our perceptions relate to other perceptions. In the same way, the accuracy of any given clock is only relative to other clocks. Because time doesn’t clearly exist outside of our own experience of it, there are ways to manipulate that experience.”

He used Siffre’s experience with time after sensory deprivation as one example, as well as the hallucinogenic drug peyote, which is known to cause changes in sense of time, such as time passing more slowly, as another. Being diagnosed with a terminal illness also changes your perception of time.

“I can’t generally advise spending years on peyote or full-time isolation in a cave,” he noted. “The most practical examples of manipulating time perception come from the common observation that the more we think about time, the slower it goes.” Hamblin wrote:6

“In his treatise, The Principles of Psychology, William James wrote, ‘A day full of excitement, with no pause, is said to pass ‘ere we know it.’ On the contrary, a day full of waiting, of unsatisfied desire for change, will seem a small eternity.'”

Depression Slows Down Time, ‘Flow’ Makes You Lose Track of It

Alan Burdick, author of “Why Time Flies,” revealed that when you’re busy, you tend to sense time as going faster than when you’re bored. Similarly, a study of more than 800 people revealed people with depression reported a slower subjective experience of time.7

As for why depressed people feels time is dragging, it’s due to a slowing down of the internal clock or because they have difficulty being in the present moment or entering a state of consciousness known as “flow.”8

Flow, according to psychologist Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi, is the secret to happiness and occurs when you are completely absorbed in an activity (often one that involves creativity).9 When you’re immersed in flow, your sense of time becomes distorted because nearly all of your brain’s available inputs are devoted to the activity at hand, Csikszentmihalyi states.

If you’re depressed and unable to fully give your attention to the present moment, and as a result find time is agonizingly slow, mindfulness-based therapies are very helpful, particularly in cases of a depressed perception of time.10 Interestingly, mindfulness also slows down your perception of time while helping you to appreciate your surroundings.

How Busy You Are Alters Your Perception of Time

If you’re too busy, flying through your daily routines on autopilot mode, you will feel like your day is over in the blink of an eye.

Neuroscientist David Eagleman, Ph.D., adjunct professor at Stanford University, explained that your mental engagement changes your perception of time, and when you’re engaged in mundane activities your brain isn’t taking in much new information. As a result, time passes quickly.11 One of the areas of the brain responsible for emotion and memory is the amygdala.

The more detailed the memory the longer the moment appears to last. This is one of the reasons why it feels like forever when you’re stuck in traffic, but your memory of the event will be that it passed quickly, as you didn’t lay down any new memory.

This is where mindfulness comes in, as staying in the moment slows down the passage of time. Steven Meyers, a clinical psychologist and professor of psychology at Roosevelt University in Chicago, told The Huffington Post:12

“Mindfulness allows people to appreciate their surroundings and leads to the feeling that time is passing more slowly. Paying attention to events that are pleasant or interesting certainly enhances our mood and allows us to savor positive experiences.”

Mindfulness Slows Down Time

Practicing “mindfulness” means you’re actively paying attention to the moment you’re in right now. Rather than letting your mind wander, when you’re mindful, you’re living in the moment and letting distracting thoughts pass through your mind without getting caught up in their emotional implications.

Add mindfulness to virtually any aspect of your day simply by paying attention to the sensations you are experiencing in the present moment. Techniques used to become more mindful include:13

Paying focused attention to an aspect of sensory experience, such as the sound of your own breathing

Distinguishing between simple thoughts and those that are elaborated with emotion (such as “I have a test tomorrow” versus “What if I fail my test tomorrow and flunk my entire class?”)

Reframing emotional thoughts as simply “mental projections” to let your mind rest

Meyers added in The Huffington Post:14

“Time slips by because we are blindly going through the routine of our day … There are a range of remedies for this situation. Some people feel a sense of accomplishment if they set personal goals for themselves and work towards them in a purposeful way. Others need to be on the lookout for certain events — like appreciating a kind behavior from another person — to punctuate time passing.”

Staying Busy Benefits Your Brain

Keeping a packed schedule makes it feel like your days fly by, particularly if you don’t make it a point to be mindful, but doing so offers significant benefits to your brain. Research published in Frontiers in Aging Neuroscience suggests that the saying “the busier the better” is true, at least as far as cognition is concerned.15

Greater busyness was associated with better cognition, particularly for episodic memory. It didn’t matter if the study participant was 50 or 89 years old, having a busier schedule was linked to improved memory and better brain processing, reasoning and vocabulary.

The researchers pointed out that busy people have increased opportunities for new learning, which has been shown to promote the retention of new neurons in the brain’s hippocampus. In addition, busyness promotes the development of neural scaffolding and consequently facilitates cognition, according to the researchers, while promoting the development of brain reserves and the use of more efficient cognitive processing.16

There are downsides to being overly busy, of course, like chronic stress and burnout. Along those lines, healthy eating is often one of the first things to suffer when life gets busy, so it’s important to stick to the basics in this regard — focus on filling your plate with real, unprocessed foods, preferably organic and locally grown, and avoid resorting to convenience and fast foods, energy drinks or excessive amounts of caffeine to keep going.

However, a busy lifestyle is also a positive one if you stay mindful and engage in activities that lead to flow. The more engaged you are, the more you will feel as though you’re living your life beyond the constraints of time instead of by them.

Properly functioning, pain-free knees are vital for maintaining an active and independent lifestyle. Your knees play a critical role in providing mobility, stability and support for numerous daily activities, from walking and climbing stairs to squatting and playing sports.

The knee joint is the largest and one of the most intricate joints in the human body, made up of bones, cartilage, ligaments and tendons that work together to support movement and bear weight. However, it is particularly vulnerable to injury due to its complex structure and the significant stress it endures.

Common knee problems include damaged ligaments, torn cartilage, tendonitis and arthritis, each of which can cause pain and mobility issues that hamper your quality of life. Fortunately, there are a wide variety of nonsurgical interventions to address knee problems and the pain they cause.

5 Common Knee Problems to Avoid

If your knee joint is injured, you’ll likely experience pain, which can range from dull to sharp and severe. Pain may occur during or after physical activity, or even while you’re at rest. Stiffness, which may make it difficult to use your joint’s full range of motion, may also occur, along with weakness or instability, such as a feeling that your knee may give out.

Other signs of knee problems include popping or crunching noises when you move your knee or an inability to straighten it. Your knee may also get locked into place and, in serious cases, be unable to bear weight. Five of the most common knee problems include:1

• Torn ligaments — This involves the tearing of one or more of the ligaments that support and stabilize the knee joint, typically due to an accident or sports-related injury. Among sports injuries, 41% involve the knee and one-fifth of those involve the anterior cruciate ligament (ACL).2

The ACL is located in the center of the knee and controls the forward movement and rotation of the tibia (shin bone) relative to the femur (thigh bone). An ACL tear is often caused by sudden stops, jumps, or changes in direction, common in sports like soccer, basketball and skiing.

• Cartilage injuries — The meniscus is a piece of cartilage that acts as a cushion between your femur and tibia. Tears can occur due to twisting motions or direct impact and can lead to pain, swelling and difficulty moving your knee. “If your knee joint is locking,” physiotherapist Patricia Collins told The Guardian, “and you’re having to physically move it with your hands, that could imply a torn meniscus.”3

• Osteoarthritis — Osteoarthritis occurs when the protective cartilage that cushions the ends of your bones wears down over time. Although osteoarthritis can damage any joint, the knee joint is most frequently affected.4

• Runner’s knee — Also known as patellofemoral pain syndrome, runner’s knee involves pain around the kneecap, often due to overuse, muscle imbalances or improper alignment of the kneecap. It’s common in athletes and active individuals.

Iliotibial (IT) band friction syndrome, also known as IT band syndrome, is another condition that often affects runners and other athletes. It occurs when the iliotibial band, a thick band of fibrous tissue running from the hip to the shin along the outside of the thigh, becomes tight or inflamed and rubs against the outer part of the knee.

• Tendinitis — This is an inflammation or irritation of the tendons around the knee joint. The most common form is patellar tendinitis, also known as “jumper’s knee,” which affects the patellar tendon connecting the kneecap to the shinbone.

Knee Surgery Is Often Ineffective, No Better Than Placebo

While certain knee problems, like ACL or meniscus tears, may require surgical reconstruction, less invasive interventions often lead to better results. For instance, the standard orthopedic surgeon’s intervention for meniscal tears is performing an arthroscopic partial meniscectomy.

In fact, arthroscopic surgery on the meniscus is the most common orthopedic procedure in the U.S.,5 but one study conducted in Finland found that arthroscopic knee surgery for degenerative meniscal tears had no more benefit than “sham surgery.”6

A landmark study conducted in 2002, published in the New England Journal of Medicine, also looked at arthroscopic surgery for knee osteoarthritis, and found the real surgery had no benefits over the sham procedure.7 According to the authors:8

“In this controlled trial involving patients with osteoarthritis of the knee, the outcomes after arthroscopic lavage or arthroscopic débridement were no better than those after a placebo procedure.”

In addition, it’s been found that arthroscopic knee surgery with meniscectomy increases the risk of future knee replacement surgery by three-fold.9 Total knee replacement, which is sometimes recommended for osteoarthritis in the knee, also carries risks. Researchers explained in the Journal of Arthritis:10

“Total knee replacement (TKR) is often the end-point of many causes of knee pain and is used with increasingly frequency. However, there are a wide variety of problems associated with TKR including ongoing pain, patient dissatisfaction and the need for revision surgery … TKR should be avoided unless absolutely necessary …”

Obesity Is a Leading Cause of Knee Problems

Your knee joint bears a significant portion of your body’s weight, and excess weight can exacerbate wear and tear, leading to various knee issues. Excess weight may lead to quicker degeneration of cartilage and an increased risk of knee injuries.

For instance, research has found significant changes in the curvature of your knee joint within the first three months after injury with an increased body mass. The results found those who underwent surgery experienced greater flattening of the knee joint than those who used rehabilitation without surgical intervention when their body mass index was higher.11

Obesity is also a leading cause of knee replacements. One Australian study of 56,217 patients showed that, of the patients who received a knee replacement due to osteoarthritis, 31.9% were overweight and 57.7% were obese.12 What’s more, those in the most severe obese category (class 3) were also more likely to have knee replacement surgery at a younger age — 7.2 years earlier than normal weight women.

While the mean age that women of normal weight have knee replacement is 71.3 years, those with class 3 obesity had the surgery at a mean age of 64.1 years. Men with class 3 obesity were also 5.8 times more likely to undergo knee replacement than normal weight men, and also had the surgery 7.3 years earlier.13

Overall, the researchers noted that close to 90% of people who undergo primary knee replacement in Australia are overweight or obese. As for why obesity increases the risk of knee osteoarthritis (OA), they explained:14

“The contribution of obesity to the development of knee OA is multifactorial. Not only does obesity cause excessive loading of joint surfaces, but dyslipidemia and adipose tissue inflammation increase cytokine production, which also contributes to the etiology of OA.”

Further, excess weight can also alter gait and movement patterns, leading to improper alignment and increased stress on the knee joint. This can cause or worsen conditions like patellofemoral pain syndrome and meniscus tears.

Nonsurgical Interventions Are Often Effective

Resolving knee problems without surgery starts with identifying their underlying cause. Depending on the condition, weight loss, physical therapy, knee braces,15 exercise, tai chi16 and acupuncture17 can help.

Platelet rich plasma (PRP) therapy, which releases growth factors that can help heal and strengthen areas of the human body, including knee joints, is another option.18 PRP therapy works by utilizing the high concentration of growth factors and proteins in platelets to stimulate and enhance your body’s natural healing processes.

When injected into damaged tissue, PRP releases these growth factors, which promote tissue repair, reduce inflammation and enhance cellular growth. Research published in the American Journal of Sports Medicine investigated the effects of PRP when applied to patients with OA in both knees.19

At six weeks and three months, patients whose knees were treated with one or two PRP injections had a reduction in pain and stiffness, and experienced improved function. At the six-month mark, positive results from PRP diminished, but knee pain and function were still better than before treatment. Consuming specific anti-inflammatory and healing foods is another strategy to support overall knee health and knee osteoarthritis prevention.

Cruciferous vegetables like broccoli, Brussels sprouts, cauliflower and cabbage, for instance, contain a compound called sulforaphane. also help reduce the risk of osteoarthritis,20 in part by blocking enzymes that are linked to joint destruction. Optimizing your vitamin D levels is another strategy, as insufficient levels of vitamin D are associated with foot pain linked to knee osteoarthritis.

In one study, 23.7% had disabling foot pain due to OA. Participants were randomly assigned to receive either a monthly dose of vitamin D3 or a placebo for two years. The data showed greater improvement in people receiving vitamin D and in those who maintained a sufficient level of vitamin D. Researchers concluded that “supplementation and maintenance of sufficient vitamin D levels may improve foot pain in those with knee OA.”21

Red and Near-Infrared Light, Glucosamine Also Useful for Knee Problems

Over the past few decades, more than 5,000 studies have been published about red and near-infrared light therapy, also known as photobiomodulation (PBM), for a wide range of ailments, including knee pain and knee osteoarthritis.22 As about 40% of sunlight is in the near-infrared spectrum, it strongly supports the idea that this is an important frequency to be exposed to.

For knee problems, low-level laser therapy (LLLT), which uses near-infrared light, is one promising option.23 “The ‘optical window’ for biological tissue is approximately 650-1200 nm [nanometers]. The tissue penetration is maximum at these wavelengths, and thus red or near-infrared light (600–950 nm) is utilized in LLLT,” researchers wrote in the Journal of Cutaneous and Aesthetic Surgery.24

Essentially, what you’re doing with near-infrared-based LLLT or photobiomodulation is stimulating your mitochondria to release nitric oxide (NO) and boosting adenosine triphosphate (ATP) production, which is the energy currency of the cell. Together, your mitochondria, NO and ATP work in concert to promote healing effects, such as DNA repair and cellular regeneration.

In a study involving patients with chronic knee pain caused by an osteoarthritis-induced degenerative meniscal tear, LLLT helped relieve chronic pain.25 Other research published in Frontiers in Bioengineering and Biotechnology stated:

“At the length of 785–904 nm, LLLT can be used as non-pharmaceutical and non-surgical treatment modality for KOA [knee osteoarthritis] patients by combining it with exercises that result in improvement in … pain, range of motion, and functional status in KOA patients via photobiomodulation.

Through this critical opinion, the authors argue that there is sufficient evidence of LLLT to be further used and commercialized as a therapeutic option for KOA patients.”

Supplementing with glucosamine, a compound found in human cartilage, is also worth considering if you have knee problems. Glucosamine has anti-inflammatory properties and may help relieve arthritis-related pain by slowing the degradation of collagen and cartilage and improving the function of your joints. One systematic review and meta-analysis revealed glucosamine is superior to placebo in alleviating knee osteoarthritis symptoms.26

Consume Collagen and Bone Broth for Joint Health

Collagen is a major component of cartilage, the tissue that’s degraded in OA and injured in cases of a torn meniscus. Collagen accounts for about 30% of the total protein in your body.

One of its primary functions is to provide structural support and strength to your tissues, such as skin, bones, tendons, ligaments and cartilage,27,28,29 allowing them to stretch while still maintaining tissue integrity. As such, collagen is crucial for repairing soft tissue, muscle and connective tissue, all of which tend to get weaker and less elastic with age.

For knee problems, a high-quality organic and/or grass fed collagen supplement at a dose of 50 grams a day can be very beneficial. Collagen supplements can be either unhydrolyzed (undenatured) or hydrolyzed (denatured). The processing that most collagen supplements undergo to become hydrolyzed can result in questionable byproducts that are best avoided.

Bone broth contains several nutrients that are beneficial for joint health, including collagen, gelatin, glucosamine and chondroitin. Bone broth also contains amino acids such as glycine and proline, which have anti-inflammatory properties that may help reduce joint pain and inflammation.

Further, bone broth may help reduce joint pain and stiffness,30 including knee osteoarthritis pain.31 It helps reduce joint pain and inflammation, in part, courtesy of chondroitin sulphates, glucosamine and other compounds extracted from the boiled down cartilage.

To make homemade bone broth, simply place bones in an Instant Pot, fill the pot with pure, filtered water — just enough to cover the bones — add salt and other spices to taste, then set it to cook on high for two hours if the bones are from a concentrated animal feeding operation (CAFO) or four hours if organic and grass fed.

Using bones from CAFO beef can be problematic due to potential heavy metal contamination. So, when cooking these bones in the Instant Pot, it’s best to limit the time to two hours to avoid introducing heavy metals into your broth.

If you’re using beef bones from grass fed organic sources, you can safely cook them for four hours. Using bones from an organic source is even more important if you’re using chicken, as CAFO chickens tend to produce stock that doesn’t gel,32 which raises questions about the quality of the collagen.

Exercises to Strengthen Your Knees

Knee strengthening exercises are crucial for maintaining healthy knees and preventing knee problems, as they help to build the muscles that support and stabilize your knee joint. Strong muscles around your knee can reduce stress on the joint, improve alignment and enhance overall function.

Isometric strength exercises, which involve static contraction of muscle as you hold your body in one position, may help strengthen joints better than dynamic strength training.33 They’re useful for reducing pain while increasing range of motion and functional ability in people with knee osteoarthritis, for instance.34 Wall sits are one example.

To perform wall sits, stand with your back against a wall and slide down into a seated position, as if you’re sitting in an invisible chair. Hold this position for 20 to 30 seconds and gradually increase the duration as you get stronger.

Exercise, along with rehabilitation, in middle-aged patients with knee damage has also been found to be as effective as a meniscal surgical repair.35 Other examples of knee-strengthening exercises include:36

Straight leg raises — Lie on your back with one leg bent and the other straight. Lift the straight leg to the height of the bent knee, hold for a few seconds, and then lower it. Repeat 10 to15 times for each leg.

Squats — Stand with your feet shoulder-width apart and lower your body as if sitting back into a chair, keeping your chest up and knees over your toes. Return to the starting position and repeat 10 to 15 times.

Sit to stand — Sit in a stable chair, then stand up without using your hands for support. Stand up and sit down 15 times. Repeat the process two to three times.

A bunion, medically known as hallux valgus, is a bony bump that forms on the joint at the base of the big toe — the metatarsophalangeal joint. It occurs when the big toe pushes against the adjacent toe, causing the joint of the big toe to become enlarged and protrude outward. Bunions can be painful and may cause swelling, redness and discomfort, especially when wearing tight or narrow shoes.

The exact cause of bunions is not always clear, but they’re often associated with wearing tight or ill-fitting shoes, genetics or certain foot conditions such as flat feet or arthritis. However, the underlying cause of your bunion may actually be related not only to improper footwear but also going barefoot for too long — and proper footwear and foot dynamics may help.

Aleena Kanner, one of the leading postural experts in the U.S. and a certified Postural Restoration Institute (PRI) practitioner, created “The Shoe Ebook” to help you make informed footwear choices for pain-free — and bunion-free — feet.

Signs and Symptoms of Bunions

Bunions are among the most common chronic orthopedic conditions that affect the forefoot, with up to 28.4% of people affected.1 One of the most noticeable signs of a bunion is a bony bump that protrudes outward at the base of your big toe joint on the inner side of your foot. Your big toe may point toward your other toes instead of straight ahead, causing the big toe joint to become misaligned.

Bunions can cause pain or discomfort, especially when you’re walking, standing or wearing shoes that put pressure on the affected area. The bunion area may also appear swollen and red due to inflammation and irritation of the surrounding tissues. Some people with bunions may experience stiffness or limited range of motion in their big toe joint. However, in some cases there is no pain at all.

Bunions can also lead to the formation of calluses or corns on the affected foot, particularly where the bunion rubs against the inside of shoes. If left unaddressed, complications can also occur, including osteoarthritis and bursitis, a painful condition that affects the small, fluid-filled sacs called bursae, which cushion the bones, tendons and muscles near joints.

Bunions may also contribute to the development of hammertoe,2 an abnormal bending or flexing of the middle joint of one or more of the smaller toes. While anyone can develop a bunion, they’re more common in women and people with a history of foot injuries, such as athletes. There also appears to be a genetic connection, as more than 70% of those with bunions have a parent who also had them.3

While the underlying causes vary, the way you walk and your foot mechanics may play a role, likely in addition to other factors, like improper shoe choices, working on your feet for long periods or underlying inflammatory health conditions like rheumatoid arthritis or lupus.4 Uncovering the foundational cause of your bunion is key to proper treatment.

How Walking Barefoot Contributed to My Bunion

I visited Aleena Kanner, one of the leading postural experts in the U.S. and a certified Postural Restoration Institute (PRI) practitioner, to address a bunion I’d been trying to treat for a year. Although it wasn’t painful, I didn’t want it to get worse. After consulting with Kanner, I now believe one of the primary causes of the bunion was adopting a “barefoot” lifestyle for well over 10 years.

Going barefoot is great if you’re walking on the beach or grass — and is an important component of beneficial grounding — but I have tile floors in my home, and walking barefoot on hard, flat surfaces can lead to problems, including bunions, as there is no supportive structure for the foot. Kanner explains:5

“It’s been a huge [trend] lately, in the last, I’d say 10 years, to be wearing barefoot minimalist shoes, or no shoes. No shoes is fine if you are out in nature. I love grounding. We all know that there’s an exchange of frequency from the earth into our bodies, and that’s great if you are outside … in sand, in grass.

However, our society is not built like that. We are not walking outside in grass and sand all the time. We are walking on flat surfaces, and the problem with that is, our feet have arches, and we need to be able to give [them] the proper contact with the ground.

It ends up actually just slapping the ground and not creating that proper movement, range of motion in the foot, where we should have pronation, supination, pronation, supination. When we’re missing that range and that flow, it can lock up your neck. It can lock up your rib cage.

Wearing a specific shoe can open up that ability to have better range of motion at the feet, which can transfer up the chain. It’s a really hard topic for people because the minimalist shoes have a great marketing scheme. They’re saying our ancestors were barefoot. But you have to think about the context of that. They were not walking on pavement all day long in cities.

They were outside in nature, where the foot’s ability to pronate and supinate was still there because nature is uneven surfaces. So I want to get across, it is OK to be outside barefoot if you’re walking on an uneven surface on the beach.

But if you are in society and you’re walking in barefoot minimalist shoes or no shoes at all, and you’re having pain or symptoms … hormone issues, et cetera, a shoe with proper ability to ground, the sensory ability to ground, is going to most likely, almost always, make a positive change for that person’s well-being.”

How Proper Footwear Can Help

While surgery is sometimes recommended for bunion treatment, less invasive options, including choosing the proper footwear, can be effective for relief. Wearing properly fitting shoes with a wide toe box, for instance, can help relieve pressure on the bunion and reduce discomfort. Custom orthotic inserts or arch supports can also help redistribute pressure on your foot and promote proper alignment, reducing symptoms associated with bunions.

Acknowledging that “improper shoe wear can quickly defeat any physical therapy program,” PRI maintains a recommended shoe list that’s updated at least twice a year, noting, “Every time you stand up your whole body is influenced by your feet. No matter what is bothering you, if you aren’t getting better, perhaps you need someone to check your shoes.”6 Wearing the wrong shoes can certainly aggravate or ameliorate bunions, as well. Kanner says:7

“When I change the shoes on people, they can’t believe it because it’s such a simple thing you wouldn’t think about … If they’re in a minimal shoe, that is a big red flag for me as a practitioner.

It’s something I need to address to get their body to be able to relax and get into that calm state to combat whatever they’re dealing with … bunions specifically can happen on the right or left foot. They’re different and should be treated slightly differently from side to side.

This is something I think chiropractors, PTs, et cetera, movement professionals, don’t always know about the body, but we are asymmetrical, so we need to be treated as if we’re asymmetrical. We have a diaphragm on the right side that’s bigger and larger, and it attaches lower into the lumbar spine compared to the diaphragm on the left side.

We have three lobes of lung on the right and only two on the left. And we have a heart that sits on the left chest wall, which keeps that whole chest wall hyper-inflated. And we have a, on average, 3-pound liver on the right side of our body. Because of this internal asymmetry, we’re going to see slight changes in how that person feels and moves.

When I see a bunion, in general, I know that person is most likely lacking an arch of their foot. A bunion is when the toe is coming inwards towards the other toes. That person’s ability to feel the ground with their arch is going to be limited most likely, especially if it’s on the right foot.

When I give that person an arch where it should be, and if they’re not normally sensing that, we don’t necessarily see a huge decrease in the bunion. Maybe with time. It’s not an immediate change because it took time for that person to get a bunion in the first place. But we see major changes in that person’s brain’s ability to feel their feet on the ground.

Somebody with a bunion has really lost that ability to pronate, which is to flatten the arch into the ground and then use their right glute to push off and get the body weight to the left. When I see bunions, I know that there have been bony changes to adapt to somebody’s gait pattern or postural breathing pattern. Gait, posture and breathing are all tied together.”

A Personalized Approach Is Best

The shoes that are right for you are likely going to be different from your neighbor. Ideally, have a professional test you to make sure you’re wearing footwear that has the desired effect in your particular case. If that’s not possible, trial and error has few downsides.

Dr. Geoffrey Phillips, an orthopedic surgeon in Great Neck, New York, also revealed that properly balanced shoes can be fundamental to bunion treatment. TIME reported:8

“The main reason why people go to the doctor about their bunion is because they’re experiencing pain, Phillips says. Some can make lifestyle modifications that eliminate the need for surgery, especially if they start when their bunion is still in its early stages. Phillips’ first recommendation is to make footwear changes.

‘If they’re accustomed to wearing high heels, we try to change that reliance to more balanced shoewear,’ he says. ‘That can include shoes with a wide toe box, so there’s less pressure on the foot.’ It can also be helpful to seek out ‘rocker bottom shoes,’ which have a curved sole that smoothes out the transition from heel-strike to landing on the front of the foot.”

In my case, the bunion is on my left foot, and Kanner gave me arch support for my right foot. The reason for this is because bunions on the left suggests the right foot is not pronating properly. Added arch support allows the right foot to flatten and push off the ground properly, which in turn facilitates the proper movement of the left foot.

I also wear a spacer between the bunion and the second toe to keep them apart and to help the bunion from worsening. Another device that seems to be working quite well is a brace that has a steel bar on one side and a Velcro band that pushes the big toe out medially. There are many corrective devices out there, and working with a professional is best to determine which are useful for your unique case. Kanner adds:9

“When I say the shoe gives the brain the ability to sense the ground better, I’m talking about certain aspects of the shoe … A lot of shoes lack what we call a heel counter. A heel counter is the back of the shoe that grabs the heel and you can feel it. If it’s hard, it’s going to hold the heel in a better place, which is going to position the talus bone, which sits on top of the heel to align the body upwards in a better position.

Feel a barefoot shoe. There’s zero heel counter there. Then that person’s heel, calcaneus and talus, is going to go in whatever position the brain wants it to go in … That’s one component of the shoe. The other component of the shoe is the arch. When you think about walking on the beach, when you’re putting your foot in the sand, there’s sand that comes up to solidify [and] ground that part of your arch.

You don’t have that when you’re walking on flat surfaces. You’re just slapping your foot into the ground. The arch is getting no feedback. I see a lot of people enter a more parasympathetic state when you just put an arch in their shoe. So those are the things we look at with shoes.”

The general principle is that if you have a movement imbalance it will invariably tend to result in some type of injury over time. Further, your body is naturally asymmetrical. Balance is maintained through the integration of these system imbalances, and when balanced integration fails, structural weaknesses and pain, as well as bunions, can develop.

Before resorting to surgery, consider if a switch to better footwear can give you the relief you’re after. In summary, the essential components of proper footwear are:10

A heel counter for calcaneal guidance, supporting the way the heel bone moves and aligns during walking
Arch support for a better ability to pronate
A flexible midfoot for fluid movement
Proper heel lift
A wide toe box for optimal alignment and comfort

For more information and guidance on selecting footwear, download “The Shoe Ebook.”

Editor’s Note: This article is a reprint. It was originally published April 12, 2017.

Dust mites are curious tiny creatures that feed off your dead skin cells and thrive in warm, humid environments. They don’t bite, and they don’t spread disease, but they are responsible for allergic symptoms and have been linked to the development of asthma in children.1

An estimated 10% of the population is allergic to the dust mite’s fecal pellets and body parts. Your pillow is one of the more common places to find large numbers of mites, as the environment is exactly what they need to grow and multiply.

In fact, pillows and down comforters can become a dust mite reservoir. And, though you may think you’ve finally found the perfect pillow for a great night of sleep, it may be time to pitch the one you have and get a new one.

Ideally, your pillow should fill the gap between your head and shoulders when you lie down. Your pillow will serve two functions — support for your neck and upper back and provide a level of comfort you wouldn’t experience without a pillow.

Support is the more important function as your spine is naturally curved at the neck and a well-placed pillow will maintain proper alignment. Although comfort is slightly more subjective, support plays a role in the comfort factor as a lack of support reduces comfort.

For those with a spinal disorder, proper support is essential to sleep quality and musculoskeletal comfort.2 One study found orthopedic pillows kept spinal alignment best, while feather pillows were the worst; individual support is the deciding factor in your pillow choice.

Your Allergies May Stem From Your Pillow

Dust mites are a fact of life. Even though you may not see them, you are their main source of food, so they are anywhere you live. In fact, brand new bedding may be completely colonized within six weeks!3

The video demonstrates how pervasive the mite population in your home may be, and why your allergy symptoms may be worse in the morning. There are 13 species of dust mites, all of which have adapted to living inside the average home.4

They thrive when temperatures are between 68 and 77 degrees Fahrenheit and humidity levels are between 70% and 80%. There are more dust mites in your bedroom and your bedding than anywhere else in your home.

So, if you have a dust mite allergy and can control the population of dust mites in your bedroom, you may also reduce your allergy symptoms. After two years without cleaning, one-third of the weight of your pillow could be from a thriving dust mite population and its droppings.5

Pillows May Increase Your Exposure to Flame-Retardant Chemicals

However, by changing one pillow for another, you may be changing one health challenge for another. Bedding is a common household material where fire-retardant chemicals are used with the idea that by slowing a burning fire, you have a better chance of escaping the flames.

Research shows that fire-retardant chemicals expose you to greater health risks, both before and during a fire. Mattresses, pillows, couch cushions and even electronics may be doused in fire-retardant chemicals, many of which have been linked to serious health risks,6 including cancer, infertility,7 birth defects and reduced IQ.

Although some of these chemicals are slowly being phased out, they are being replaced with others. The materials infused with older retardants are filling landfills, and chemicals are leaching into the groundwater, slowly making their way back into the food supply.

In 2006, the U.S. government moved to phase out polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDEs), as multiple studies showed it interfered with the endocrine system and led to neurodevelopmental problems.8

A 2017 study suggests the levels of PBDEs in humans have stopped declining, plateaued and may even be higher in certain populations.9 The study’s lead author, a research associate with the Cancer Prevention Institute of California, points out that once these chemicals have reached the environment, they are virtually impossible to destroy.

The Environmental Working Group (EWG) reports replacement chemicals are quietly taking the place of those being phased out and have not yet undergone scrutiny.10 The extent of the trend was not clear until scientists found a major increase in exposure to chlorinated tris in the past decade.11

Tris has been added to many types of foam furniture, including pillows — this is despite the fact that tris is a known carcinogen that may cause neurological damage. California has now classified it as a chemical known to cause cancer.

What You Might Not Know About Fire-Retardant Chemicals

Among the strongest opponents of fire-retardant chemicals are the firefighters who are forced to breathe the chemicals when they respond to a fire. Not only are the fumes toxic, but the chemicals are also ineffective.

The National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health released the results of more than five years of data demonstrating firefighters face difficult health challenges.12

Their study evaluated over 30,000 firefighters across the U.S. and found this population suffers a greater number of cancer diagnoses and deaths than the general population. Types of cancers included digestive, oral, respiratory, urinary and blood cancers.

Occupational exposure to toxic gases during a fire was the likely culprit. Following past studies, fire-retardant chemicals have been removed from children’s pajamas in response to concerns about cancer, but continued to be used in furniture and foam cushions.

These chemicals were originally developed in the 1970s when cigarettes were a major source of house fires. Under pressure to make fire-safe cigarettes, the tobacco industry pushed for federal standards for fire-retardant furniture instead.

As of July 1, 2007, all U.S. mattresses are required to be highly flame-retardant, to the extent that they won’t catch on fire if exposed to a blowtorch.13

This means manufacturers are dousing them with highly toxic flame-retardant chemicals, which do NOT have to be disclosed in any way. This is probably the most important piece of furniture you want to get right, as you are spending about one-third of your life on it.

Unless you’ve recently remodeled using only natural materials, it’s likely you have flame-retardant lurking in your home right now. You can help to reduce your exposure using these tips:

Know the date of manufacture — Be especially careful with polyurethane foam products manufactured prior to 2005, such as upholstered furniture, mattresses and pillows, as these are most likely to contain PBDE flame retardants.

If you have any of these in your home currently, consider replacing them. At the very least, inspect them carefully and replace ripped covers and/or any foam that appears to be breaking down. Also, avoid reupholstering furniture by yourself, as the reupholstering process increases your risk of exposure.

Use caution during carpet removal — Older carpet padding is another major source of PBDEs, so take precautions when removing old carpet. You’ll want to isolate your work area from the rest of your house to avoid the chemical from spreading, and use a HEPA filter vacuum to clean up.

Take care with electronics — You may also have older sources of PBDEs known as Deca in your home. These chemicals are so toxic they are banned in several states. Deca PBDEs can be found in electronics like TVs, cell phones, kitchen appliances, fans, toner cartridges and more.

Wash your hands after handling electronics, especially before eating, and at the very least, be sure you don’t let infants mouth any of these items (like your TV remote control or cellphone).

Consider naturally safe replacements — As you replace PBDE-containing items around your home, select those that contain naturally less flammable materials, such as leather, wool and cotton.

Consider organic or “green” materials — Look for organic and “green” building materials, carpeting, baby items, mattresses and upholstery, which will be free from these toxic chemicals and help reduce your overall exposure.

Furniture products filled with cotton, wool or polyester tend to be safer than chemical-treated foam; some products also state that they are “flame-retardant free.”

Clean dust carefully — PBDEs are often found in household dust, so clean up with a HEPA-filter vacuum and/or a wet mop often.

How to Get a Restful Night of Sleep

Getting a restful night of sleep is important to your overall health and wellness, and sleeping position is just one of the factors that makes a difference in how rested you may feel in the morning. More than 90% of Americans claim a comfortable pillow is important to how well they feel in the morning.14 You may have a preference for the type of pillow you like prior to sleep, but if you’re waking with back and neck pain, it may be time to make an adjustment.

On your back is the best sleep position as it maintains your head and spine in a neutral position, reduces symptoms of acid reflux and may even prevent wrinkles.15 When on your back, the best pillow is no pillow at all, but rather a flat rolled towel or ultra-thin pillow that will not push your head and neck forward, impacting your breathing.

While the position you use at night affects how well-rested you feel in the morning, I provide additional tips to improve the quality of your sleep, from timing and lighting to temperature, in my article “Top 33 Tips to Optimize Your Sleep Routine.”

Risks Associated With Poor Sleep

A lack of quality sleep may lead to sleep deprivation, which has been linked to a number of different health conditions. Just some of the problems associated with sleep deprivation are listed here. As you can see, they may affect your productivity at work, your relationships, your finances and your health.

Poor emotional balance
Reduced immune function

Worsened constipation
Increased risk of car accidents

Increased accidents at work
Reduced ability to perform tasks

Reduced creativity at work or in other activities
Increased risk of depression

Slowed reaction time
Increased risk of Type 2 diabetes, obesity, cancer, high blood pressure, osteoporosis and cardiovascular disease

Altered gene expression. Research has shown that when people cut sleep from 7.5 to 6.5 hours a night, there were increases in the expression of genes associated with inflammation, immune excitability, diabetes, cancer risk and stress16
Contribute to premature aging by interfering with your growth hormone production, normally released by your pituitary gland during deep sleep

Reduced brain plasticity and ability to learn new concepts
Reduced motor (physical/athletic) performance

Worsened behavioral difficulties in children
Exacerbated or increased risk of stomach ulcers

Intensified chronic pain. In one study, poor or insufficient sleep was found to be the strongest predictor for pain in adults over 5017
Increased risk of depression. In one trial, 87% of depressed patients who resolved their insomnia had major improvements to their depression, with symptoms disappearing after eight weeks

Exacerbated or increased risk of chronic diseases such as, Parkinson’s, Alzheimer’s, multiple sclerosis (MS), gastrointestinal tract disorders, kidney disease and cancer
Harm your brain by halting new cell production. Sleep deprivation can increase levels of corticosterone (a stress hormone), resulting in fewer new brain cells being created in your hippocampus

Are You Ready to Replace Your Pillow?

Failure to change your pillow every six months to a year may also increase your risk of acne breakouts.18 Pressing your face into old dirt, oil and dead skin cells may increase your risk of clogging pores and developing whiteheads. Down pillows and comforters attract the most debris and cannot be cleaned conventionally to rid the product of dust mites.

Wash your pillows regularly by putting two pillows in the washing machine at a time to balance the load. Add as little detergent as possible. Run them through the rinse cycle twice and then tumble dry. During the summer months consider hanging the pillows out on sunny days to reduce humidity in the pillow.

The National Sleep Foundation recommends replacing pillows every one to two years,19 and extending the life of your pillow by washing it every six months. You’ll know it’s definitely time to replace your pillow when it becomes lumpy, the shape and comfort no longer resemble a new pillow, or you fold it in half and it doesn’t quickly bounce back.

The Wonders of Wool

The alternative bedding you may have been searching for is made from a sustainable product, naturally repels dust mites, doesn’t contain fire-retardant chemicals and supports your body temperature changes throughout the night. That product is wool.

It may sound like your pillows and comforters would smother you in heat, as woolen jackets have long been what you sought after in the deeply cold winter months. But, for the same reason wool jackets work so well in the winter to protect your body heat, they also work in your bedding to provide you with exactly what your body needs for a restful sleep. Wool fibers trap your body heat, helping you to maintain a steady temperature.

Other types of bedding trap warm air, creating a humid environment, ripe for dust mites. However, wool releases the humidity and helps maintain a steady temperature unique to your body’s needs. Wool also naturally passes federal fire testing, requiring no additional chemicals.20 Wool is machine washable, hypoallergenic and supports farmers who provide a sustainable product. It can be harvested from sheep, alpaca, angora rabbits and camels.21

Creating a restful and safe environment in your bedroom is important to your health and wellness. By reducing your exposure to dust mites and fire-retardant chemicals, and by making small changes to your nightly routine, you may experience greater productivity during the day and improved health overall.