LIVING LONGER, FULLY–FUNCTIONAL AND DISEASE-FREE (or even perhaps with a chronic disease or condition).

Sounds impossible, however let the experience of this senior medical researcher in successfully surviving 3 major life-threatening medically-documented clinical events, together with the published results including a recent major university study reveal just how simple this can be.

Succinct Fully-documented Medical History Maxwell Strong

1996 Myocardial Infarct (Sudden Cardiac Death) Sutherland District Hospital. Resuscitated Subsequent successful Triple Bypss Graft Surgery St.George District Hospital. Surgeon Dr George Fermanos

2004 Advanced, aggressive inoperable Prostate Cancer (PSA <250ng/ml, Gleeson Score 8). Dr. Edward Corbell Consultant Urologist, Miranda. Professor John Kearsly, Cancer Care Centre, St.George District Hospital

2011 Right Cerebral Infarct (Stroke). Conveyed to Sutherland District Hospital Discharged 1 wk later.

“Since his discharge (13/12/2011) he has been doing well. He has no residual or fresh symptoms The limb and face weakness has resolved.” Dr Param Kharbanda Neurological Staff Specialist Sutherland Hospital (23/12/2012)

Now try to fit yourself into one of three following population categories common to industrialised countries:-

1. No Longevity Health Concerns

These are those who have convinced themselves that they will live long, disease-free and fully-functional without adopting a lifestyle to match this vain hope. They are probably either overweight or obese (about 60% of us), maybe cigarette smokers, and/or habitual excess alcohol consumers. They are not concerned by the World Health Organisation’s categorisation of alcohol as a Grade 1 carcinogen, along with asbestos. They typically embrace an inactive sedentry lifestyle..Regardless of any life-threatening condition or disease they will probably encounter, they are always watching the evening telecasts for a “cure”. As most chronic diseases are complex and multi-factorial, it is possible that the cure may never come. They ignore the fact that prevention is the best cure as “ a disease that is prevented does not need a cure”. Should they live long enough, they will probably represent a considerable burden on our already over-stretched health-care system and nothing the health authorities can do will change their lifestyle.

2. Prepared to adopt a healthy lifestyle with disease-free, fully-functional successful longevity as their goal

These are the genuine health heroes in our society. They habitually enjoy a healthy low-fat, low-refined carbohydrate (sugars), high-fibre diet, avoid excess energy intake (overeating), and combine this with an active lifestyle, even as little as a daily 30-minute walk as we age. They are certainly non-smokers and do not have an excess alcohol intake.

They will have made the important discovery of a good primary care physician (GP) and he or she will be the cornerstone of our healthy living regardless of age. They share all health concerns with their GP who will undertake regular (6-monthly) health checks including full body chemistry, scans, tests and X-rays where necessary. All concerns will be referred to a clinician (medical specialist) and followed through with further appropriate treatment if necessary.

It is critically important that we return briefly to the diet as detailed study of the robust evidence-based medical science supporting the university published, peer-reviewed studies demonstrate. The respected Westmead Institute for Medical Research of the University of Sydney, recently published the results of their 10-year detailed dietary study of a population of 1,600 adults aged 49 years and older. The factors researchers examined included fibre intake which was divided into 5 levels (quintiles) from the lowest to the highest. A/Prof Bamini Gopinath head researcher commented, “Out of all the variables that we looked at, fibre intake – which is a type of carbohydrate that the body can’t digest – had the strongest influence. The research study demonstrated that those with the highest quintile intake of this “indigestible” fibre were 80% more likely to have a long, disease-free and fully-functional lifecompared to the lower fibre intake groups in the 10-year follow up, and found that the greatest difference to what they termed “successful ageing” was the fibre intake.

The researchers defined “successful aging” as “an absence of disability, depressive symptoms, cognitive impairment, respiratory symptoms, and chronic diseases including cancer, coronary artery disease, and stroke”. Who would not want such healthy living, particularly as you discover just how simple over 10 years’ active research has made this?

But sadly, we’ll have to now leave this group of healthy agers to look at those (about 80% of us by the time we reach age 65 years), who for various reasons, perhaps genetic, contend with and manage life successfully with one or more chronic disease or condition.

3. Living longer, fully-functional and with a successfully-managed disease or condition.

My brother and I dearly loved our parents and valued the care and love we enjoyed. However, their unavoidable gift of vascular genes was not ideal as we were all to discover from about mid-life on wards. My father died at age 54 years of cerebral hemorrhage, a type of stroke, my mother died at age 68 years of a massive MI (heart attack) and my brother died at age 60 years of MI (heart attack), and as indicated above, I unfortunately suffered sudden cardiac death (MI) at age 61 years fortunately whilst talking with a triage nurse at Sutherland Hospital and was able to be quickly resuscitated. And so for the past 22 years, with the benefit of current medical science and excellent care of my primary health care physician, Dr Ralph Levin and the respected senior cardiologist Dr Robert Smith, I have been able to live a fully-functional, active condition-managed healthy lifestyle.

For a number of years I have enjoyed my work as consultant to a number of local and international pharmaceutical companies necessitating as you would imagine detailed continuing study of literally many thousands of peer-reviewed published university research, a task which I enjoy and embrace enthusiastically (particularly where it selfishly involves my own successful survival). My diagnosis over 14 years ago of advanced aggressive inoperable cancer with a grim survival prognosis of about 2 years or so, forced me back to the study of many thousands of published epidemiological studies, seeking a pathway to this cancer with the intention of discovering a disease progression which I might attack. And here I made an important discovery. Populations with the highest level of some, but not all dietary fibre were able to enjoy the lowest rates of most cancers. But which fibre and why?

The other key was a Canadian university study which demonstrated that from about the end of our 4thdecade (about mid-life), we develop a redox imbalance, that is our body’s natural free-radical antioxidant defences fall dramatically, leading to chronic low-level systemic inflammation. Here was the pathway from initiation to promotion and finally progression to most chronic disease. But the real hope for successful survival involves the relatively recent and complex exciting branch of medical science known as epigenetics. And for any chance of my long-term survival, it was here in this science that I have had to intensely investigate over a period of over many years (still ongoing).

Epigenetics is the term which describes the way our DNA information (chromatin) is translated into the way we function including our ability to destroy cancer cells, to the way we fight gerocognitive degeneration by building brain plasticity protecting us against dementia and stroke, to protection of cardiac function and vasculature and so on. This is far too complex to discuss here but it is to here that we can turn to find the reasons the Westmead study researchers and others are able to demonstrate healthy ageing with disease-free fully-functional longevity enjoyed by those with the highest levels of “indigestible fibre”.

It gradualy became evident to me that this could be exactly what I needed as here was the key link between the Westmead study fibre, and the epigenetic chromatin mechanisms that could enhance the healthy ageing longevity I hoped for. The Westmead researchers called this fibre “indigestible” simply because we have no enzymes able to digest the fibre which then passes undigested to the large intestine where it is metabolised by resident gut microbes, converting it to short chain fatty acids, particularly butyrate. With over 300,000 published studies, butyrate is without doubt the most studied natural chemical, and for the medical professionals, uniquely promoting health and wellbeing due to its known potent antioxidant, anti-inflammatory and epigenetic chromatin protection (HDAC inhibitor) function.

NEUROLEX – Butyrate-optimised “indigestible fibre”.

My remaining challenge was to find the best natural vegetable fibre and optimise it for maximum butyrate yield. This again involved further study and research. Trials were completed and the with an excellent safety record,100% natural ANZFA approved food dietary vegetable fibre ingredient NEUROLEX finally began production in our food laboratory.

Of course it was not long before our family noticed the improvement in my health and active wellbeing and began using NEUROLEX as a key component in their diet. This soon spread to friends and their friends, the growing user base now includes medical ptactitioners, researchers, academics, and wider members of the public. Whilst the medical science involved in this microbial conversion of the Westmead researchers’ discovery of the disease-free, fully-functional longevity is extremely complex, I am always happy to discuss the science with researchers and medical practitioners and can be contacted via Email: maxwellstrongresearch@gmail.comor Mob 0418413657 at any time, or via our website below where additional science supported information is available.

Butyrate is now recognised for its gene-regulating chemopreventive effects, but too, it can be used effectively for its gene-regulating therapeutic functions, possibly allowing others too, to enjoy such a long, active healthy lifestyle even while living with a controlled health challenge as has been my experience for the past 22 years. As husband, father, grandfather and now great-grandfather I can only be grateful for the medical research which is demonstrating the immeasurable value in adding this “indigestible fibre” to my regular daily diet. We all consume only about one-half the recommended daily intake of fibre, and adding a raised teaspoon 2-3 times daily of this flavour-enhancing, soluble fibre to beverages, cereal and other foods will provide the critical health-promoting remaining half of our daily fibre intake.

Maxwell Strong PhD

MS DISEASE CONTROL

NEUROLEX PTY LTD

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