Stay Strong for Life

How do you ensure healthy aging?

It’s easy to recite what we should do: Eat healthy whole foods. Get adequate sleep, exercise regularly, and lose weight. Avoid overexertion. Live mindfully, manage chronic stress, stay active, and social.

Some experts say 70 percent of all age-related disease is related to lifestyle choices – like drinking and eating habits – while your genes cause 30 percent.

Intuitively, aging well calls for protecting our joints. From childhood into young adulthood, physical movement and brain organization comes naturally. It’s later in life that we misplace things, bruise easily, and can’t jump up from the chair as quickly. That’s wear-and-tear catching up with us.

Body structure consists of bone, muscle, and cartilage. Cartilage connective tissue is essential for support. It’s not as rigid as bone, has some flexibility, and yet is more stable than muscle. Cartilage exists in our joints, nose, ears, bronchial tubes, at the ends of our ribs, and between vertebrae in our spine.

Healthy cartilage creates healthy connections. It cushions joints, reduces friction between bones, holds bones together, and helps support weight when running, bending, and stretching. Weight-bearing joints like the hips, knees, and ankles often show the first signs of aging. Why? Cartilage and tendons lose the fluid that makes the joints less flexible and elastic. Inflammation, bone friction, and erosion cause pain.

Losing weight and maintaining a healthy weight range for your body type help joints remain strong. Studies show each pound of weight loss reduces pressure on the knee joints by four pounds. The overall risk of osteoarthritis associated with cartilage breakdown in joints also decreases.

When it comes to joint health, one solution does not fit all. That’s why Quality of Life offers three formulas. QOL Cartiquil® contains a trio of advanced classic botanicals that provides fast-acting joint comfort, as quickly as seven days. QOL Cartiflex® is collagen extract blended with chondroitin to increase joint mobility and range of motion in synovial joints. The result is a more active daily life.

Beyond comfort and mobility, overall joint functionality is essential for wellbeing. QOL Cartilast® comprises four ingredients that help protect existing cartilage from erosion, maintain beneficial joint function, and may help build new cartilage.

The central component of Cartilast® is Avocado Soy Unsaponifiables (ASU), a natural vegetable extract made from avocado oil and soybean oil. ASU blocks pro-inflammatory chemicals, prevents deterioration of synovial cells that line the joints, and may help regenerate healthy connective tissue.

ASU is a routine osteoarthritis treatment in Europe. Results include slowed cartilage breakdown, improved pain from hip and knee osteoarthritis, and reduced need for NSAIDs (non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs).

• AvoVida®, an advanced proprietary extract of Avocado Soy Unsaponifiables (ASU), eases inflammation response in joints and cartilage. It may protect cartilage from erosion and encourage the synthesis of collagen and proteoglycans.
• Vitamin D3, as fat-soluble cholecalciferol, helps the body absorb calcium and phosphorous. It builds bones and delays neurodegenerative decline.
• Vitamin K2, in the form of VitaMK7®, is derived from natto, a soybean food that helps blood clot and aids in bone formation.
• Boron is a trace mineral found in plant foods that helps reduce inflammation, strengthens bones and joints, and helps fight osteoporosis.

Injury and natural wear can compromise cartilage integrity. Since cartilage lacks blood vessels or nerves, any damage is challenging to repair without medical intervention. Maintaining a healthy weight, exercising daily for flexibility and strength, and avoiding overexertion is critical. It is essential that the speed of cartilage breakdown not outpace cartilage repair.

Healthy aging is an ongoing process. When joint structure and longevity is the focus, Cartilast provides advanced support without side effects.