Obesity is considered such a risk factor for chronic inflammation and the development of the chronic lifestyle related diseases such as Diabetes Mellitus Type 2, Metabolic Syndrome, certain types of Cancer, High Blood Pressure, High Cholesterol and Heart Disease that it should be considered and treated like an Adipose or Fat Tumor. Weight, body fat and distribution can be measured objectively. If a person is depositing more body fat in the middle this is central visceral(organ) abdominal fat and is the most dangerous. This indicates that body fat is being stored in and around your vital organs. It is better to have stored body fat on the hips and buttocks than in the abdomen. If you know someone who looks like they are pregnant, and they are not, then this depicts someone at high risk for the chronic lifestyle related diseases since they literally have a dangerous level of fat storage in their abdomen.

Obesity is an inflammatory condition because: · Fat cells are not just inactive storage vehicles · They actively secrete > 100 proteins, fatty acids, hormones and inflammatory substances that cause inflammation · Fat cells are rich in arachidonic acid (AA) which leads to inflammation · 1/3 of IL-6 (inflammatory agent) is produced by fat cells · Fat increases TNF-alpha( inflammatory agent) production Excess Fat produces inflammation and inflammation leads to accelerated aging. It is simple as that. The cornerstone of any Healthy Aging program begins with an anti-inflammatory approach to nutrition, exercise and hormone optimization.

BIOMARKERS OF AGING: the variables that play the largest role in determining your health and vitality for a lifetime. Biomarkers are objectively measured variables which help in the assessment of determining your biological age -your body's actual age as opposed to chronological age- the number of birthday's you have had.

BIOMARKERS OF AGING can be improved throughout your lifetime giving you a younger Biological Age even though your Chronological Age may be higher. The GOAL of a program in Age Management Medicine is to lower your Biological Age by changes in Nutrition, Exercise, Supplementation and Hormone Balancing and Replacement. All of these factors contribute to your Biological Age and can be optimized to improve your overall body function so that your Biological Age is 8-20 years younger.

Fish and Omega-3 Fatty Acids:Anti-Inflammatory Nutrition American Heart Association Recommendations Omega-3 fatty acids benefit the heart of healthy people, and those at high risk of - or who have - cardiovascular disease. The American Heart Association recommends eating fish (particularly fatty fish) at least two times a week. Fish is a good source of protein and doesn't have the high saturated fat that fatty meat products do. Fatty fish like mackerel, lake trout, herring, sardines, albacore tuna and salmon are high in two kinds of omega-3 fatty acids, eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA) and docosahexaenoic acid (DHA).

The American Heart Association also recommends eating tofu and other forms of soybeans, canola, walnut and flaxseed, and their oils. These contain alpha-linolenic acid (LNA), which can become omega- 3 fatty acid in the body. The extent of this modification is modest and controversial, however. More studies are needed to show a cause-and-effect relationship between alpha-linolenic acid and heart disease.

Perhaps one of the areas of greatest concern to my patients as they age is their memory and brain health. It makes sense that an Age Management Medicine program would proactively address brain health and memory since quality of life is reduced if your memory fails you.

A recent scientific breakthrough in the treatment of Alzheimer's Disease provides clinical evidence that there is a rapidly reversible cause of the memory related problems seen in Alzheimer' Disease. Alzheimer's disease (AD) is the most common form of dementia among older people and initially involves the parts of the brain that control thought, memory, and language. The name of the inflammation producing substance in the brain which is believed to be the cause of Alzheimer's Disease is called Tumor Necrosis Factor alpha (TNF-alpha). This is fascinating news since it had always been believed that the damage caused by Alzheimer's Disease to the brain was irreversible. The fact that treatment with a medication called etanercept quickly reversed some of the memory problems in patients with Alzheimer's demonstrates the role that TNF alpha plays in the disease. This information is worthy of further investigation and will lead to a better understanding of the disease as well as its prevention and treatment. These are exciting times for the treatment of neuroinflammation or inflammation found in the brain leading to a chronic debilitating disease such as Alzheimer's Disease.

The cutting edge scientific study which for the first time documents marked improvement in Alzheimer's disease within minutes of administration of a therapeutic molecule, etanercept, has recently been published in the Journal of Neuroinflammation. The new study, entitled "Rapid cognitive improvement in Alzheimer's disease following perispinal etanercept administration," and the accompanying commentary, entitled "Perispinal etanercept: Potential as an Alzheimer's therapeutic," This study has changed our understanding of Alzheimer's Disease and once again given credit to the underlying theory that inflammation plays a role in chronic diseases such as this one.