SUPPORTING ANABOLIC METABOLISM
Building Vital Health and Longevity with Anabolic Support
Metabolism oversees and coordinates the dozens of biochemical processes that maintain life, supply energy, and enable us to respond to our environment, and can be divided into two categories - processes that break down (catabolic metabolism) and processes that build up (anabolic metabolism). The ongoing dynamic balance of anabolic and catabolic processes creates metabolic homeostasis, and supporting this balance is a fundamental aspect of Natura’s approach to health and vitality.
Anabolic processes create complex materials from simpler substances; they build.
Anabolic processes include synthesizing the basic components of cells like proteins and lipids, as well as creating the storage form of nutrients to be utilized as needed for energy. The process of anabolism influences bioenergetics, cell communication, cell proliferation, endocrine function, immunity, protein synthesis, and brain function (including behavior and mood). This not only keeps the body and mind running smoothly but is also the most important element to building and maintaining a strong, healthy body.
Catabolic processes move in the opposite direction, breaking down complex molecules into smaller ones.
This process provides the metabolic energy necessary for functioning, and they tend to release energy in the form of energy- rich compounds like adenosine triphosphate (ATP). Catabolic processes not only supply the energy to power anabolic activity by utilizing the food we eat and air we breathe, they also provide the small molecules (building blocks) required to create more complex molecules, and the electrons which act like “glue” by holding atoms together through chemical bonds.
Maintaining a Healthy Balance
In a fully developed (non-growing) cell, a healthy balance will exist between the two states. In a cell where the anabolic processes dominate over the catabolic ones, growth will result. This same concept applies to the entire organism. Take a human for example. As a child, youth naturally provides an anabolic dominant metabolism to support the growth requirements necessary for healthy development. This is the reason why children often bounce back quicker from illness and injury. Once fully mature, a balance between catabolic and anabolic activity is found to sustain the body. Maintaining this balance is crucial to ensuring quality of life and longevity, as it impacts every aspect of health.
WHAT HAPPENS AS WE AGE
The Shift Towards Catabolic Dominance
As we age, the balance slowly shifts towards a more catabolic dominant metabolism, initiating the many physical and energetic changes we associate with later stages of life. The body becomes less efficient, losing the ability to keep pace with the rate of breakdown that is occurring. This shift results in decreased energy levels, physical deterioration, increased susceptibility to illness and injury, and longer recovery times.
In addition, the cumulative burden of chronic stress caused by the internal and external challenges we face today can contribute to dysfunctional metabolic pathways and push our balance into a more catabolic state. To maintain balance, we need to enhance our anabolic metabolism.
PREVENTING BREAKDOWN
Supporting Anabolic Restoration
Despite the body’s natural tendency toward catabolic activity as we age and the many factors that promote catabolism, the choices we make over the course of our lives can encourage anabolic activity and greatly improve our body’s ability to age gracefully. In conjunction with a healthy lifestyle with proper diet, regular exercise, and good rest, nutrients and botanicals that safely enhance anabolic activity and help restore metabolic homeostasis can be highly effective tools for strengthening the body’s ability to regenerate and repair itself.
Natura’s anabolic support formulas provide synergistic combinations of ingredients to encourage anabolic restoration, vital health, and longevity. These formulas increase strength, endurance, and stamina and optimize recovery time from exercise or stress and are designed to enhance energy reserves, promote peak physical performance, support all active lifestyles, and are foundational to any longevity program.
