“Antiaging” is a misnomer. With every tick of the clock, we’re all a little older. The only way to prevent aging, truthfully, is to stop living—which is really not what we want to accomplish! Instead, most adults want to be as healthy as possible for as long as possible. We’ll call it aging proactively.

Aging proactively obviously involves eating well, exercising regularly, and getting enough sleep. But a complete plan for healthy aging also includes the use of supplements to make up for nutrient deficiencies, system breakdowns, and assimilation problems caused by—well, aging. Consider adding these supplements to your proaging strategy:

Get the Bugs Out: Probiotics
Digestion doesn’t stop in your stomach. In fact, it barely begins there. Much of our food breakdown takes place in the intestines, thanks to millions of naturally occurring bacteria. Along with helping us to get the nutrients from our foods, these beneficial bacteria also play a role in the manufacture of vitamin K, which is essential for blood clotting.

According to Brenda Watson, ND, CNC, author of Renew Your Life: Improved Digestion and Detoxification, nearly 75 percent of your immune system is located in your digestive tract. Unfortunately, low stomach acidity, a diet high in processed foods, or the use of antibiotics can destroy the delicate bacterial balance in the intestines. “Impaired digestion is the beginning of a process that ends with chronic disease,” says Dr. Watson. Autoimmune diseases such as arthritis, fibromyalgia, chronic fatigue, irritable bowel syndrome, and others have also been linked to poor digestion.

Clinical research shows that the amount of good bacteria in our intestines declines considerably with age. As a result, Dr. Watson suggests, “adults over 50 should consider supplementing their diet with probiotics to obtain the immunity-enhancing benefits of these helpful bacteria.” Probiotics are live microorganisms (bacteria or yeast) that have been shown to help maintain a healthy balance of bacteria in the digestive tract. Bifidobacteria in particular are crucial for keeping the immune system in proper working order. “Take your probiotics immediately after your meals,” says Dr. Watson, “when stomach acid is buffered.”

Feed Your Brain
When most of us think about fueling our bodies, we get as far as the digestive tract—but that’s merely the first step in energy creation. Nutrients leave the gastrointestinal (GI) tract and travel via the bloodstream to every one of our trillions of cells. It’s in the cells where the real energy production takes place.

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