It is possible to retard the aging process and live a healthy life. Oldness can be converted into newness if we live from the level of consciousness

Living from the level of consciousness adds life to years and not years to life. This is possible through mind-body intervention and optimum lifestyle intervention including regular meditation, yoga, exercise, ‘pranayama,’ consuming a ‘sattvic’ diet, perfect sleep, becoming the embodiment of positive emotions, managing stress in a very subtle manner, not consuming junk food and poisons such as tobacco or alcohol or addiction-forming drugs etc.

How do we classify ageing?

Newness can be classified as

1.) Chronological Age

2.) Biological Age

3.) Psychological Age,

4) Emotional Age

5) EnvironmentalAge

6) Vascular Age

7) Spiritual Age.

Chronological Age: Chronological Age is calendar Age. Our chronological age is a measure of several rotations the earth has performed on its axis and around the Sun since we left our mother’s womb.

Biological Age: Biological Age refers to “how good you look”. It is calculated concerning an average population of the same Chronological Age. The markers of biological age are known as biomarkers and these markers are:

Biological Markers of Age

Hair – Premature graying represents oldness and blackness of hair represents Age.

Hearing – Premature diminution of hearing represents oldness and preservation of hearing threshold represents Age.

Vision– Premature formation of cataracts represents oldness and maintaining the integrity of the lens represents healthy ageing

Teeth – Premature fall of teeth represents oldness and preservation of teeth represents Healthy Ageing

Wrinkles on the face: Premature wrinkling of the skin on the face and elsewhere represents oldness and the absence of wrinkling of skin represents healthy ageing. Muscle Mass: Reduced Muscle Mass and weakening of muscle strength prematurely represents oldness while its preservation represents healthy ageing.

Bone and joints: Osteoporosis and Osteoarthritis – Prematurely represents oldness and preserving the bone, spine, and joint health represents healthy ageing.

Menopausal changes: if occur prematurely represent oldness and maintaining its relation with nature represents healthy ageing.

Prostate: Enlargement of the prostate prematurely also represents oldness while maintaining the integrity of the prostate is healthy ageing.

Blood Pressure: A rise in Blood Pressure prematurely represents oldness and maintaining normal blood pressure represents healthy ageing.

Cholesterol: A rise in Blood Bad Cholesterol Levels prematurely also represent oldness. Sugar: A rise in Blood Sugar prematurely also represents oldness while maintaining normal levels represents healthy ageing.

Immune Function: preserving immunity is an expression of healthy ageing

Antioxidant: Increased Antioxidants are healthy ageing.

Breathing Capacity: preservation represents Healthy ageing.

Metabolic Activity: preservation represents Healthy ageing.

Sleep: Sleep patterns, especially sleeplessness and restlessness represent unhealthy ageing.

Psychological Age: Is How Good we feel subjectively, we can feel 40 at the age of 60, which is a healthy psychological age. Reduction in Cognitive functions, forgetfulness, unnecessary anxiousness, unnecessary aggression, unnecessary hostility, and negative imagination represent oldness. We  can reverse our biological and psychological ageing by achieving Newness potential through a disciplined lifestyle

Emotional Age: Enhancing positive emotions such as emotion of love, compassion, humility, harmony, and calmness are expressions of healthy ageing.

Environmental Age: Environment is our extended body and it influences ageing. A healthy Environment is responsible for healthy ageing and unhealthy environments such as toxic emotions, toxic behaviour, toxic relationships, toxic air & water and toxic eatables are responsible for unhealthy ageing.

Vascular Age:

Vascular ageing is associated with changes in the mechanical and structural properties of the blood vascular wall such as loss of arterial elasticity, endothelial dysfunction, reduced arterial compliance and premature hardness of blood vessels or plaque formation in the blood vessels is unhealthy ageing.

Spiritual Age: Healthy Biological, psychological, emotional, environmental and vascular ageing are expressions of optimised spiritual ageing from the level of consciousness. We can change our Newness potential biology through our perceptions, our thoughts and our own choices. Thus, spiritual age is an expression of soul, spirit or consciousness which is a field of newness.

(The writer is the chief cardiologist at Medanta Moolchand Hospital; views are personal)

This is the second part of the  series on ageing. Concluded.