SFH #116: Autophagy
Say what?!
What if I told you we have a natural way for our bodies to take damaged cells and repair and recycle them into healthy functioning cells? This process is autophagy. It means 'self-eating.’ The direct explanation if you will.
Today, I share why autophagy is essential and how we achieve it naturally.
The bottom line for the importance here is that our bodies can take dysfunctional cells and effectively clean them and recycle the parts for healthier new cells. This process is so inspiring and fresh that a Nobel Prize of Medicine was handed out in 2016 to Yoshinori Ohsumi for his research and findings in autophagy.1
Researchers hypothesize that autophagy is a survival mechanism that has anti-aging benefits. It does this by cleaning cellular waste from the body, providing energy through healthier cells, and protecting us from disease through reducing inflammation and protecting our DNA and cellular materials.
We can activate autophagy naturally through fasting for shorter (intermittent) or more extended periods.2 We can also induce the process through exercise.3 It's all truly that easy. I'm sharing this fun infographic👇 just to hammer it home. Also watch this video 📺 for the more detailed version on the cellular level.
What are you waiting for? Go autophagic! 🎉a
https://www.nobelprize.org/prizes/medicine/2016/press-release/
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3106288/
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3463459/