Issue #2: What to Eat
Good morning. It’s Tuesday, Aug 16th. It's a special birthday for someone in the Thrive25 family! Also, found out reading my kid’s Highlights Magazine that today is National Roller Coaster Day. Growing up near Cedar Point, this brought back some real nostalgia. Can’t wait for my kids to be excited to ride 300 ft coasters!
“Food is far more than just calories or energy to fuel our bodies. It is the information, instructions that regulate every function of our bodies in real time.”
Every Tuesday we’ll include a QR (quick recipe) - today we’re sharing my personal break-fast smoothie!
The percentage of American men who eat the recommended amounts of fruits and veggies.
The 3 Dimensions of Nutrition
Like all animals, our primary source of energy is food. Food isn’t just about losing weight or putting on muscle - food impacts every single cell in our body.
To optimize health & longevity, consider nutrition along 3 dimensions:
This week we’re focusing on the What to Eat axis...
Specifically, we're going to cover all things fruits and veggies (aka - superfoods).
There is now science that shows nutrient-dense foods (like some we'll profile this week) are absolutely more effective than any drug at optimizing our health & longevity - and the only side effects are things like "more energy" and "positive mindset."
Today we're talking fruit.
Ok - so we need about 2 servings (either whole fruit or a little more than a handful) of fruit per day.
But which ones should we eat??
The Grand Slam List
In Eat to Beat Disease, Dr. William Li lists out 9 fruits that make his “Grand Slammer” list. These fruits activate or support nearly all of our body's defense systems:
Turning on/off genes that improve our health and potentially slow down/reverse aging (epigenetics)
Activating our angiogenesis defense system to prevent cancer*
Increasing longevity by stimulating stem cells
Boosting energy by supporting the health of our mitochondria
Improving happiness by elevating your mood and supporting your brain health (really!)
The Grand Slam list:
Summer is nearly over - so get out there and enjoy the last of this season's stone fruits (that's the category of peaches, plums, nectarines, apricots) before they’re gone until 2023!
* Angiogenesis is the process our bodies use to grow and maintain blood vessels.
Power Berries
We typically think of berries when we pack them in our kid’s lunches as a healthy snack - but we should be eating them everyday too!
Check out the benefits of raspberries:
And blueberries are on Dr. Kara Fitzgerald’s Dynamic Dozen Superfood List (#3) as an awesome way to support DNA methylation - which is the primary way we measure our biological age (i.e., it slows down aging) and even grow new neurons in our brains!
Blueberries get their blue color from anthocyanin, an amazing compound that really protects our bodies (including our eye health).
Maximize Performance: Just 1.5 cups of blueberries per day boosts our T-cells by 88%. What does this mean? It's actually a huge freaking deal - T-cells are key to our immune system, fending off wannabe challengers like viruses and cancer so they can't stay with you.
Similarly, strawberries are high in fisetin, a senolytic (a what?*) that has been shown to extend the lifespan of mice by 10 percent. It also kills off senescent cells (zombie cells that need to go away and aren’t helping us anymore).
We get more of these zombie cells as we age - it turns out strawberries are better at killing zombies than Woody Harrelson.
* A senolytic is a form of a phytochemical, which gives plants their color. These phytochemicals include polyphenols, flavonoids, and carotenoids that all help protect the plant from natural predators (like insects and the sun) and help optimize our health and disease prevention. Learn more from Chris Kresser’s blog.
Pro Tip: Eat a Kiwi
Eating a kiwi (technical name is a kiwifruit, but that just seems redundant) reduces your DNA damage by 60%! It's loaded with Vitamin C and helps protect your gut.
It's actually great with the skin on if you cut it into thin slices. The skin provides 34% more folate and 32% more Vitamin E, plus insoluble fiber as food for the good bacteria in your gut!
Not into the skin - just cut it in half and scoop it with a spoon.
So there you you go - make sure you get in some Grand Slammers, some berries, and maybe a kiwi.
Quick Win
Easy way to get some fruit every day - throw in some lemon juice and a bit of Himalayan Salt in your water first thing in the morning. Lemons are relatively low in sugar and have tons of Vitamin C.
** Tastes better using hot water, but your call.
Speed Read
Health & Longevity in the News
How Zac Brown Stays Fit on Tour: One of our favorite bands is back this summer and fall (Ryan will be at his stop in Tampa on Oct 8th if you're down this way). After The Boss (Springsteen) told him "You gotta sweat for an hour a day", he put together an entire gym to bring with him on the road.
Economy Impacting Meditation: Calm, a billion dollar meditation app, just laid off 20% of its workforce. The company has cited fewer users and lower retention rates. Is now the time to stop meditating?
A Sweat Necklace: Wearables continue to innovate into new forms. A new biosensor can measure electrolytes and sugar in the body without being invasive. We can see the next level to optimize your workouts, hydration, and nutrient in-take.
The Future of Hair Loss Treatment: Scientists have identified the single protein that causes hair follicles to grow and to die...TGF-beta. By using stem cells there might be a 100% effective way to bring back your natural hair.
Tuesday QR (Quick Recipe)
This is my personal go-to daily smoothie. It's damn good and super healthy (includes those berries we talked about).
I actually look forward to it as my first food of the day. If I'm sticking to a 16:8 fasting schedule, then I'll make this after my morning workout and have it around 11am.
Links to preferred brands (no affiliation):
Bucket List
Kite Surfing
FL Gulf Coast beaches are great for my kids, but unless there’s a hurricane my surfboard pretty much lives in the garage.
Not ready to give this trick a go - but kite surfing lessons are definitely on my list!
Any kiteboarding experts out there?
Thanks for joining us today!
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Why Thrive25
We’re 40-something dads that felt our bodies and minds start to slow down and we’re not ready for that. We found too much information on every subject. So we started Thrive25 to transform what we’ve learned into something useful for the rest of us to spend just 3-5 min a day to optimize our health & longevity.
This newsletter is for you and we truly value your feedback. Never hesitate to reach out to us at team@thrive25.com.
To health!
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The information in this newsletter is for informational purposes only and may not be appropriate or applicable based on your individual circumstances. Thrive25, Inc. does not provide medical, professional, or licensed advice. Please connect with your healthcare professional for medical advice specific to your health needs.