The World Health Organization (WHO) has put forward the initiative of healthy aging, namely "Extending the concept of health to the process of anti-aging, focusing on the health problems in the process of medical care and anti-aging, focusing on improving the quality of life of most people, prolonging their lives, and making human beings live healthier and longer.”。
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What is aging?
Senescence is a complex biological process. With the decline of body function, the stress ability and adaptability to the environment are correspondingly weakened.
In the process of aging, organisms are degenerated at the levels of organs, tissues, cells and molecules.
The appearance changes of human aging mainly include: thinning of skin epidermis, reduction of connective tissue, reduction and disappearance of subcutaneous fat, relaxation of skin and increase of wrinkles; Hyperplasia of endocardial collagen fibers and elastic fibers in cardiovascular system; Arteriosclerosis, decreased vascular elasticity, deposition of calcium and lipid substances in intima, and stenosis of lumen; The weight of the nervous system brain is gradually reduced, and the brain volume is reduced.
The aging of the human body is ultimately the aging of cells.Therefore, the most fundamental way of Anti-Aging is to remove aging cells, repair damaged cells, improve cell metabolism and activate the function of dormant cells. So,The application of immune cell technology and stem cell technology to anti-aging can truly "symptomatic anti-aging".
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The essence of aging and anti-aging
◆ Age life
An important indicator of aging is life span.The life span of species is relatively fixed. Mice in the laboratory can live to be about 3 years old on average, domestic dogs are about 15 years old and monkeys are about 30 years old. Scientists estimate that,The life expectancy of human beings is 120-150 years.
At present, the oldest person recorded in the Guinness Book of World Records is alive.122 yearsFrench woman Calmant. According to World Health Statistics 2019, the average life expectancy of the global population in 201672 years oldJapan’s average life expectancy84.2 years oldRanked first in the world.
◆ Aging aging
One of the most important factors determining life expectancy is aging. Aging is the natural attenuation of the inherent life process (life expectancy), or the attenuation process after being disturbed by internal or external factors; It is also a unique physiological process in which the functions of various tissues and organs of the body degenerate with age. As long as it is a living body, it will certainly age.
◆ Anti-Aging
Anti-aging is a measure to eliminate the interference of internal and external environment on the inherent life process of human body, so that people’s life can be naturally extended. In other words,Aging is the attenuation process of life disturbed by internal and external environment, and anti-aging is anti-interference.
◆ Anti-aging has two goals:
The first goal is to keep the body healthy and live to life expectancy.;The second goal is to delay the aging process and prolong life expectancy.Two idioms are used to describe it. The first goal is to prolong life, and the second goal is to prolong life.
Prolonging life expectancy involves the essence of life and is insurmountable; Eliminating the interference of environment on life process and living to the expected life span is relatively more likely to be realized.On the basis of living to the expected life, pursuing a higher quality of life is a higher requirement for us to fight against aging.
◆ Three anti-aging systems
To resist the interference of internal and external environment on life process, such as microbial infection, cell mutation and tumorigenesis,We need a healthy and powerful defense system, namely the immune system.The decline of immune function is an important factor causing aging.
If the damage caused by internal and external environment to human body is not repaired in time, it will lead to persistent inflammation and various chronic and refractory diseases. Therefore,Maintaining a strong tissue repair system is very important for disease treatment and anti-aging health care.
Stem cells participate in anti-aging in many aspects, including differentiation into immune cells to resist the interference of internal and external environment; Participate in metabolic regulation and maintain the internal balance of the body; By controlling inflammation and repairing tissues, various chronic diseases can be prevented.
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The role of immune cells in anti-aging
Studies have shown that eliminating zombie cells can improve a series of diseases, includingCataract, diabetes, osteoporosis, Alzheimer’s disease, heart enlargement, kidney problems, arterial obstruction and age-related muscle loss..
◆ The phenomenon that women live longer.
Women’s menstrual cycle or physiological cycle has created a stronger immune system, which is also the essence that women’s life expectancy is generally higher than that of men around the world. A study in Japan shows that compared with men,Women’s immune system ages much more slowly.
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The role of stem cells in anti-aging
First, the relationship between aging and stem cells
Studies have shown that red bone marrow is replaced by yellow bone marrow,Black hair and white hair are all manifestations of stem cell aging and reduction.With the increase of age, the ability of stem cell clone formation decreased significantly. These findings reveal that,Aging is closely related to stem cell aging and number reduction.
Second, the anti-aging effect of stem cells
(1) tissue repair
The occurrence of diseases or the aging process all originate from tissue damage.Tissue damage will lead to the incompleteness of tissue structure and the degradation or loss of function.
(2) Metabolic regulation
Smooth or strong metabolic ability is the key to longevity and anti-aging. On the one hand, we can reduce the burden of metabolic organs by controlling diet and achieve the purpose of maintaining the smooth metabolic system; On the other hand, we can also enhance the function of metabolic organs and promote metabolism with the help of drugs or stem cells, so as to achieve the effect of anti-aging and health care.
(3) Inflammation control
Injury and repair is a dynamic process, and inflammation plays an important role in the process of injury repair. Theoretically, any cell or factor with regenerative function has an important role in anti-inflammation.
Supplementing stem cells and immune cells, a new anti-aging way
With the continuous improvement of people’s quality of life, the requirements of anti-aging are increasing. Stem cells have the ability of self-renewal, multi-directional differentiation and paracrine secretion, and show good application prospects in clinical medicine fields such as wound repair, tissue regeneration and anti-aging.
Therefore, stem cells are an important new life energy and renewable energy for everyone. Replenishing stem cells and immune cells for many times, maintaining and improving physiological functions and body functions, and prolonging the length of life may become a new life form and a new lifestyle for human beings.