--- In morelife@yahoogroups.com, "Erich Brueschke"
<erich_brueschke@...> wrote:
>
> Paul:
>
> I read with interest your post to Russell Cheney, and at the very end
> you made this very provocative statement:
>
> [Finally, as I have told you for several years, the considered result
> of all my research and reading tells me that you are overdoing your
> running and will likely run yourself into an early grave if you
> continue. --Paul]

[This reply gives me a chance to correct something in the above comment that I
originally made in the first reply to Russell Cheney.
While the phrase "into an early grave" is well known and often used in English
writing, it does not actually apply, literally, either to Russell or to me and
Kitty. The proper phrase for those who are enrolled for cryopreservation
(cryonicists) would be "into an early cryopreservation". Cryonicists, who plan
to be cryopreseved upon legal death (the end of viability - see
http://morelife.org/lifespan/preserving/lifedeath_def.html ), think of this as
merely the "first life cycle" and that they are not "dead", unless and until it
is found that it is impossible to restore them to a fully functional living
form. When that is done (as all cryonicists earnestly desire, no matter how long
into the future before this can be accomplished), then they will start their
second life cycle. Naturally, it is also the hope of all cryonicists that any of
their current disabilities or simply non-full function will by then be
completely curable and that lifespan will be greatly increased. --Paul]


> Could you please elaborate on this and does your view extend to weight
> lifting or any vigorous exercise in gereral?
>
> Warmly,
> Erich Brueschke
>
> [The best way to begin my response is to remind you and other
> readers that everything: a particular food, a supplement, radiation,
> heat, cold, oxygen, water, even time! has either an inverted J or
> inverted U (both generally stretched horizontally on their sides)
> shaped curve of benefit to the health of the human body (on the
> y-axis) to dosage (on the x-axis). And whenever I say "health" I
> include longevity as a part of time-integrated health. The general
> rules for all things is that both too little and too much are
> detrimental to human health. This has also been stated as: "The dose
> makes the poison". --Paul]
>
> [Many of the beneficial effects of exercise are due to a hormesis
> effect. The term hormesis refers to the beneficial effects of low
> doses of otherwise harmful substances. One example of this is the
> increase in reactive oxygen species (ROS) generation during exercise,
> as the abstract below states. Exercise results in increased ROS
> formation in the body. ROS, while generally having harmful
> effects, if present in sufficient quantities can exert a
> beneficial adaptive response in the body. But if they are not
> present in high enough quantities, or on the other hand too high
> quantities, the effect would either be no adaptive stimulation or
> too much harmful ROS formation. The sweet spot is somewhere
> between, at the top of the bell curve; where you get just enough
> ROS formation to excert a beneficial adaptive response, but not
> enough to cause much harm. -°Olafur]

When moderating this message I made a mistake. Notice that in my comments above
I say: "as the abstract below states". I originally wrote my comments above in
a text document as I often do when working on posts, but somehow when I
proceeded to copy my comments to the MoreLife Yahoo group edit window, I left
out the abstract I referred to. Paul thought I was simply referring to one of
the abstracts he had posted below, and that I had simply forgotten to put my
signature at the end of the message. He then added my signature at the end of
my comments, and a little later Kitty approved the message. Just to be
accurate, here is the abstract I was referring to:


Biogerontology. 2005;6(1):71-5.
Exercise and hormesis: oxidative stress-related adaptation for
successful aging.
Radak Z, Chung HY, Goto S.
Exercise Physiology Laboratory, School of Sport Science, Semmelweis
University,
Budapest, Hungary, radak@....

The hormesis theory purports that biological systems respond with a
bell-shaped curve to exposure to chemicals, toxins, and radiation.
Here we extend the hormesis theory to include reactive oxygen
species (ROS). We further suggest that the beneficial effects of
regular exercise are partly based on the ROS generating capability
of exercise, which is in the stimulation range of ROS production.
Therefore, we suggest that exercise-induced ROS production plays a
role in the induction of antioxidants, DNA repair and protein
degrading enzymes, resulting in decreases in the incidence of
oxidative stress-related diseases and retardation of the aging
process.
PMID: 15834665

-°Olafur

[Note that a "bell-shaped curve" is exactly like the inverted U that I had
mentioned in my first comment. However, hormesis has a more complicated meaning
than does the simple "dose makes the poison". Generally, hormesis requires an on
and off regimen of something that is mildly toxic. CR (calorie restriction) is a
typical hormetic effect, because the calorie restricted animal oscillates
between being in a fed state and being under the stress of hunger. In the same
manner, exercise is only hormetic if one oscillates between the stress of hard
exercise and an adequate period of unstressed recovery and repair. --Paul]