Your Body Is Rotting From Inside Everyday: Can You Stop It?

"When you put the chicken in an oven and it goes from pink to brown, it gets cooked and it gets glycated. The glycation is doing the cooking. A human being, from the moment they're born, starts cooking on the inside. I know this sounds weird, but it's true. When you're fully cooked, you die. I know it sounds strange, but it's actually what happens." This statement, which was shared by a health & wellness account Tribe Wellness Warriors on Instagram, has started a new discussion about the process of glycation and its impact on humans.

Let's Understand Glycation First

Every time you eat food, your body breaks down carbohydrates into glucose, fructose and other sugars. It then uses all these sugars to fuel the body. Now, many times, particularly when we age, we consume more and more sugar, they abnormally react with proteins and fats, thereby, producing harmful molecules called advanced glycation endproducts (AGEs). This process is called glycation. The more AGEs we have in our bodies, the more we age. For example, if you look at the cartilage of a baby, it's white. If you look at the cartilage of a person who's 100 years old, it is brown because it has glycated.

The key here is blood sugar—the higher the level of glucose in the blood, the more AGEs. Diabetics have the most difficult time of anyone controlling their blood sugar. Scientists have found that as a result, diabetics tend to age faster than those without high blood sugar.

How Can Slow Down Glycation?

Glycation and glucose kind of sound similar. It is because, as said before, it is the glucose that does the glycating. The lower the glucose, the lower the glycation. The more glucose is in your body, the more glucose spikes you experience, the faster you are cooking, the faster you are glycating, and the faster you are ageing.

Therefore, by following some simple steps, you can slow down glycation:

1. Control Blood Sugar Levels

If you’re diabetic, you already know this is key to your overall health, but now you know it can also be an anti-ageing technique. Even if you’re not diabetic, though, blood sugar spikes can affect the condition of your skin. Try to maintain a steady level. Fuel your body with low-glycemic foods and eat every three to four hours.

2. Cut Back On Sugary Items

Next time you feel a craving for that powdered doughnut, look in the mirror. Is it worth new wrinkles? This may help you choose a piece of fruit or a cup of unsweetened yogurt instead.

3. Choose Low-glycemic Foods

It’s not just sweets that increase blood sugar. Remember that many foods, like white bread, white rice, white potatoes, and similar items break down quickly in the body, spiking blood sugar levels. These are foods that rate high on the glycemic index. Choose foods on the lower end—they take more time to break down, helping to stabilize blood sugar levels and keep you satisfied.

4. Watch The Barbeque

Barbequing, searing, and broiling food can actually create AGEs in the food—before you even eat it! Whenever you see that blackened meat look, you’re looking at AGEs.

5. Protect Your Skin

UV exposure increases the formation of AGEs. Protect your skin from the sun, always. Try zinc oxide.

6. Maintain A Healthy Weight

Research has found that excessive weight or waist size can increase the formation of AGEs.

7. Lift Few Weights

Muscles consume glucose, so the more muscle you have, the more glucose your body will take up. As we age, we naturally lose muscle. Reduction in muscle mass can increase blood sugar levels, leading to increased AGEs.

8. Watch Alcohol Intake

Researchers have found that alcohol enhances glycation stress.

9. Boost Your Antioxidant Intake

All fruits and veggies, as well as things like dark chocolate and tea, have powerful antioxidants that help protect cells from glycation.

10. Consider Vitamin B Supplement

Studies have found that vitamins B1 and B6 help inhibit the formation of AGEs. Another promising compound that protects against AGE formation is carnosine.