Wellness is the daily active pursuit of an optimal state of health with special emphasis on a highly functioning body and mind. The Eternal Quest for Immortality, Part 4 Wellness and the price of immortality Steve Zoltai is the collections de-velopment librarian and archivist for CMCC and is a member of the Canadian Chiropractic Historical Association. He was previously the assistant executive director of the Health Sciences Information Con-sortium of Toronto. He has worked for several public and private libraries and with the University of Toronto Archives. Steve comes by his interest in things historical honestly – he worked as a field archeologist for the Province of Manitoba. He can be contacted at [email protected]. In part 3 of our series on aging and longevity, we looked at health span and the genetic basis of extreme longevity. In part 4, we conclude the series with a look at wellness, mind-body relationships and the personal cost of life extension. WEllNESS Dr. James Meschino is an associate professor at the Canadian Memorial Chiropractic College (CMCC) where he has taught courses in biochemistry, nutrition and natural medicine for nearly three decades. Wellness, Dr. Meschino tells us, “is the daily active pursuit of maintain-ing or acting to achieve an optimal state of health with special emphasis on a highly function-ing body and mind.” As a DC and ND, Dr. Meschino is well positioned to comment on the role of wellness in ag-ing. In his estimation, “the way the body is designed for aging we become prone to age-related ailments such as cancer, heart disease and diabetes as a result of the ‘aging-clock’. After the age of 40 there are certain genetic ‘time bombs’ that are set off in the body that predispose us to decline and degeneration that leads, eventually, to death. Once we’ve lived long enough to procreate and our offspring are old enough to be self-sufficient, nature is basically done with us. At that time, these genetic markers activate setting the stage for ailments such as cartilage erosion and osteoarthritis as well as general weakening of the immune system. Over time, for example, prostate cancer increases, calcium loss from our bones may lead to osteoporosis and levels of the memory chemical acetylcholine decline, opening the door to dementia. The heart no longer has access to optimal amounts of the powerful antioxidant, Coenzyme Q10, and this may lead to future congestive heart failure and high blood pressure. These are just a few of the health-related issues stemming from aging.” “Over the last 30 years,” Dr. Meschino comments, “anti-aging researchers have shown us what those aging markers look like and the good news is that they can be combated using targeted nutrition, exercise intervention, supplementation and some chiropractic care to have a more functional body for a longer period of time and hopefully to achieve life-extension as www.canadianchiropractor.ca Steve Zoltai 16 • CANADIAN CHIROPRACTOR | MAY 2012
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