CityView Magazine

Geszler now specializes in what some call Ò anti-agingÓ medicine. But what exactly does it mean to age? According to the Journal of Gerontology, aging is a random process caused by the escalating loss of molecular fidelity, which breaks down the bodyÕ s ability to repair and increases its vulnerability to disease. The rate of aging varies from organ to organ, tissue to tissue and cell to cell. And for as long as people have aged, we have tried to stop it. The unscrupulous have used this to their advantage; the quackery and deceit of those promising a fountain of youth have brushed the edges of medicine for a long time. But Geszler says that true anti- aging medicine isnÕ t necessarily about increased longevity. Dr. Ron Rothenberg, founder of California Healthspan and a regular lecturer for the American Board of Anti-Aging Medicine, talks about achieving Ò rectangulariztionÓ of life. The goal is to stay as strong, healthy and happy for as long as possible without a protracted period of debility before our deaths. Rothenberg says traditional medicine instead prolongs the end of life, when we have already accrued a variety of disabilities and diseases. HereÕ s one example: conventional physicians measure testosterone levels in men using age-adjusted values to determine Ò normal.Ó But Rothenberg says this makes no sense at all. An 80-year-old man with visual deficits is not compared to other men his age Ð his vision is compared with vision that is normal for everyone. By this measurement, about half of 60-year- old men would have testosterone levels in the pathologic range if physicians used norms for 20-year-olds. Most conventional physicians would not supplement testosterone for these men but Rothenberg does. He asserts that his patients have demonstrable improvement in muscle mass, libido, erectile function, mood, memory and quality of life. But Geszler cautions that there is no magic cure for aging. ÒI f you want one pill,Ó she says, Ò donÕ t come to me.Ó What tests does she order? Geszler regularly prescribes a micronutrient analysis for many of her patients because most people need more micronutrients than our diet allows. She also measures stress hormone levels. A fan of yoga, Geszler both prescribes and practices it. Ò Do you meditate daily?Ó is one of her standard questions, and she considers spirituality and prayer very important. Ò People are overstressed and unless they can get their stress under control,Ó she says, Ò they are just treading water.Ó Is there a limit to how long we can live? At the time of her death in November 2007, Elizabeth Ò LizzieÓ Bolden was 116 years old. Bolden, whose great-granddaughter, Dr. Juanda Vinodhkumar, lives and works in Fayetteville, was recognized by the Guinness Book of World Records as the worldÕ s oldest living person. How did she do it? Gerontologist L. Stephen Coles believes that under ideal conditions the maximum human life span is 125 years. He studies supercentenarians, people who are 110 years of age or older. The oldest documented person was 122 when she died in 1997. What are some features that supercentenarians share? Their early health status was excellent with most virtually never needing a doctor before the age of 90. The extreme ages are achieved in spite of heavy smoking, heavy drinking, failure to exercise and no conscious effort to eat nutritiously. Nearly all of the supercentenarians have long-lived siblings, many with several siblings that lived more than 95 years. So does living a long life boil down to picking the right parents? Does living well make a difference? Should our goal be Ò rectangularizationÓ or can we all be supercentenarians? Geszler does not have answers to all of these questions, but she believes patients can be helped by looking at medicine a different way, a different path to living longer, healthier lives. CV Dr. Lenny Salzberg teaches and sees patients at the Southern Regional AHEC Family Medicine Center. CityViewNC.com | 37

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