Medical tourism is an interesting modern phenomenon.

It’s where people travel abroad to receive treatment for various reasons, but the main attraction is the low cost of procedures they’d pay much more for in the U.S. Cosmetic medical tourism is immensely popular for that reason

I’ve heard good and bad things about medical tourism, and though it’s not my cup of tea, another travel-related benefit certainly is…

It’s called travel therapy and it could serve as a groundbreaking anti-aging intervention — no surgery, injections or hospital stay required.

According to researchers from Edith Cowan University, it could be the best way to defy premature aging…

Slowing the trend toward disorder and death

For the first time, researchers have applied the theory of entropy to tourism and health benefits that could slow aging.

Scientists classify entropy as the general trend of the universe towards death and disorder. In humans, that translates to aging.

“Ageing, as a process, is irreversible. While it can’t be stopped, it can be slowed down,” says lead researcher Fangli Hu.

She and her team believe travel could slow aging by triggering changes that help the body sustain a low-entropy state.

That’s because travel and exposure to new surroundings and relaxing activities positively influence metabolic activities and may also trigger an adaptive immune system response.

That latter part is a big deal because with age, our adaptive immune response declines — along with the atrophy of the thymus, a gland that supplies immune cells when we’re young.

“Put simply, the self-defense system becomes more resilient. Hormones conducive to tissue repair and regeneration may be released and promote the self-healing system’s functioning.

“Leisurely travel activities might help alleviate chronic stress, dampen over-activation of the immune system and encourage normal functioning of the self-defense system. Engaging in recreation potentially releases tension and fatigue in the muscles and joints. This relief helps maintain the body’s metabolic balance and increases the anti-wear-and-tear system’s effectiveness. Organs and tissues can then remain in a low-entropy state.”

Take a trip to slow aging — or try these anti-aging practices

So if you want a youthful boost, maybe a vacation is just what the doctor ordered! If you’ve been putting it off, for whatever reason, you’ve got a great reason to make your plans now.

If travel abroad or to a resort isn’t possible, there are plenty of destinations right here in the U.S. and most likely, even in your state, that could help you relax and trigger a low-entropy state the researchers mentioned.  

If travel isn’t possible, exercise could kick things into gear. The researchers noted the physical activities of travel such as walking, hiking, climbing or cycling, promote a low-entropy state.

And if you can handle intense exercise, you could also “wake up” your thymus. A couple of years ago, researchers found that 80-year-old endurance cyclists were producing the same level of T-cells as adults in their 20s!

Reducing oxidative damage can also help. Oxidative stress can suppress your T-cell response, which impairs the adaptive immune response. At the same time, reduced oxidative damage at the cellular level means slower biological aging.

The nutrient resveratrol, found in the skin of red grapes, helped spearhead research into anti-aging because of its effects against oxidative stress. Muscadine grapes have high levels of resveratrol and of course, you can find the anti-aging antioxidant in supplement form.

Sources:

Travel could be the best defense against aging — ScienceDaily