Author Archives: Edward Brownlee

Reversing Mitochondria Decline Due to Aging

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“Mitochondria are the “energy factory” of our body and produce 90% of the energy our body needs to function.” ~ Cleveland Clinic

Mitochondria are the “energy factory” of our body and are essential organelles that play a crucial role in energy production, cell signaling, and metabolism, according to the Cleveland Clinic. Several thousand mitochondria are in nearly every cell in the body. The trillions of cells that comprise our body tissues run on the energy created by mitochondria. Their job is to process oxygen and convert substances from the foods we eat into energy. Mitochondria produce 90% of the energy our body needs to function. And, healthy cells rely on healthy mitochondria. Their optimal function leads to incredible health benefits, and is particularly essential to heart, kidney, eye, brain and muscle function.

According to the Cleveland Clinic, Mitochondrial cytopathies—disorders of the energy-producing organelles of the cells—are an increasingly recognized cause of human illness. They can be caused by inheritable genetic mutations, acquired somatic mutations, exposure to toxins (including some prescription medications), and the aging process itself.

Mitochondrial diseases are chronic (long-term), genetic, often inherited disorders that occur when mitochondria fail to produce enough energy for the body to function properly. (Inherited means the disorder was passed on from parents to children.) Mitochondrial diseases can be present at birth, but can also occur at any age.

Mitochondrial diseases can affect almost any part of the body, including the cells of the brain, nerves, muscles, kidneys, heart, liver, eyes, ears or pancreas.

Mitochondrial dysfunction occurs when the mitochondria don’t work as well as they should due to another disease or condition. Many conditions can lead to secondary mitochondrial dysfunction and affect other diseases, including:

  • Alzheimer’s disease.
  • Muscular dystrophy.
  • Lou Gehrig’s disease.
  • Diabetes.
  • Cancer.

Aging

Mitochondrial decline is a natural part of aging, and it can also contribute to various age-related diseases and conditions. Our mitochondria are constantly renewed to produce energy and fulfill the vast energy demands of muscle and other tissues. As we get older, mitochondrial renewal declines and dysfunctional mitochondria accumulate in the cells, resulting in significant issues. Age-associated mitochondrial decline leads to a progressive decline in our metabolism, our overall energy levels, our resiliency and our muscle function.

Scientists hypothesize that supplements and lifestyle changes can improve mitochondrial health by increasing the availability of proteins needed for adenosine triphosphate (ATP) production (AMPK activation, PCG-1a, NAD+, SIRT1/3). Here are some ways to help reverse mitochondrial decline:

1) Exercise regularly: Regular exercise can help stimulate mitochondrial biogenesis, the process by which new mitochondria are formed. Aim for at least 30 minutes of moderate-intensity exercise per day. Exercises, including both endurance exercises and resistance/strength training. These are done to increase aerobic fitness, muscle size and strength. Endurance exercises include walking, running, swimming, dancing, cycling and others. Resistance/strength training include exercises such as sit-ups, arm curls, knee extensions, weight lifting and others.

2) Eat a healthy diet: A healthy diet that is rich in whole foods, fruits, vegetables, and healthy fats can help support mitochondrial health. Avoid processed foods, refined sugars, and unhealthy fats.

3) Take supplements: Some supplements, such as Coenzyme Q10 (CoQ10), nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide (NAD+), niacinamide, Pyrroloquinoline quinone, or PQQ, nicotinamide riboside, and alpha-lipoic acid (ALA), can help support mitochondrial function and slow down mitochondrial decline. Coenzyme Q10 (CoQ10) is the best known supplement used in treating mitochondrial cytopathies. Consult with a healthcare professional before taking any supplements.

CoQ10 is a nutrient produced naturally in your body. A powerful antioxidant, it protects your brain, heart and muscles. “CoQ10 is in virtually all cells in the body,” Dietitian Devon Peart, MHSc, BASc, RD, says. “It’s mostly concentrated in the mitochondria, or the ‘powerhouse’ of the cell. That means it’s involved in energy production and powers biochemical reactions.” In addition, CoQ10 has anti-inflammatory properties. Additionally, aging is a factor in your CoQ10 levels. “Like many other things, it’s a natural function of age — your ability to make CoQ10 decreases as you get older,” Peart says, adding your ability to produce CoQ10 peaks in your 20s.

Niacinamide is a vitamin found in foods and supplements. It forms a major component ofvitamin B3. Niacinamide is the precursor to NAD+ and thus, supplementation is claimed to increase levels of this molecule and improve mitochondrial function. Niacinamide may improve mitochondrial quality of cells by causing dysfunctional mitochondria to fragment (autophagy).

4) Practice intermittent fasting: Intermittent fasting is a dietary approach that involves cycling between periods of fasting and eating. This practice has been shown to improve mitochondrial function and increase lifespan in animal studies. Restricting calories and fasting intermittently decreases energy levels in the body. To compensate, levels of NAD+ increase, which increases the ability of the mitochondria to produce ATP. This results in a subsequent rise in ATP levels due to improved mitochondrial function.

5) Manage stress: Chronic stress can contribute to mitochondrial dysfunction, so it’s essential to manage stress through practices like meditation, deep breathing, or yoga.

6) Get enough sleep: Lack of sleep can disrupt mitochondrial function and contribute to mitochondrial decline. Aim for 7-9 hours of sleep per night.

Remember that mitochondrial decline is a natural part of aging, and it cannot be entirely reversed. However, you can slow down the decline and improve mitochondrial function by making lifestyle changes that support overall health and well-being.

Consult with a healthcare professional before making any significant changes to your diet or exercise routine.

References:

  1. https://my.clevelandclinic.org/health/diseases/15612-mitochondrial-diseases
  2. https://foodtrients.com/anti-aging/three-step-strategy-to-reverse-mitochondrial-aging/
  3. https://www.timelinenutrition.com/science
  4. https://health.clevelandclinic.org/what-is-coq10/
  5. https://health.selfdecode.com/blog/natural-ways-to-improve-mitochondrial-function/

Economics for the Citizen by Dr. Walter E. Williams

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“The first lesson in economic theory is that we live in a world of scarcity. Scarcity is a situation whereby human wants exceed the means to satisfy those wants. Human wants are assumed to be limitless, or at least they don’t frequently reveal their bounds. People always want more of something, be it: more cars, more food, more love, more happiness, more peace, more health care, more clean air or more charity. Our ability and resources to satisfy all those wants are indeed limited. There’s only a finite amount of: land, iron, workers and years in a lifetime.” – Dr. Walter E. Williams

“The first lesson in economic theory is that we live in a world of scarcity,” explains Dr. Walter E. Williams, an American economist, commentator, academic, and the former John M. Olin Distinguished Professor of Economics at George Mason University, “Scarcity is a situation whereby human wants exceed the means to satisfy those wants.”

Economics is the study of how we use our limited resources (time, money, etc.) to achieve our goals. This definition refers to physical scarcity.

Americans always want more of something, be it: more cars, more food, more love, more happiness, more peace, more health care, more clean air or more charity. Our ability and resources to satisfy all those wants are indeed limited. There’s only a finite amount of: land, iron, workers and years in a lifetime.

Scarcity produces several economic problems: What’s to be produced, who’s going to get it, how’s it to be produced, and when is it to be produced?

There’s simply not enough resources to meet all the competing wants and uses. That means there’s conflict over limited resources and its uses. Basically, there are several methods of conflict resolution.

  • Market mechanism — let the highest bidder be the one who owns and decides how the land will be used.
  • Government fiat, where the government dictates who gets to use the land for what purpose.
  • Gifts might be the way where an owner arbitrarily chooses a recipient.
  • Violence has always been a way to resolve the question of who has the use rights to the coastline — essentially people get weapons and physically fight it out.

Many Americans would say, “Violence is no way to resolve conflict!” On the contrary, the decision of who had the right to use most of the Earth’s resources was settled through violence (wars). Who has the right to the income you earn has been partially settled through the threats of violence. In fact, violence is such an effective means of resolving conflict that most governments want a monopoly on its use.

The pertinent question that arise is what is the best method to resolve conflict issues surrounding the questions of what’s to be produced, how and when it’s produced, and who’s going to get it…is it the market mechanism, government fiat, gifts or violence, ask Dr. Williams.

Federal, state and local tax levies represent government claims on private property of American citizen, explains Dr. Williams.  In other words, taxes represent the government’s legal confiscation and theft of the private property of American citizens.

References:

  1. https://www.capitalismmagazine.com/2005/01/economics-for-the-citizen-part-1/

Inverted Yield Curve and the U.S. Treasury 10 Year

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Given the inverted yield curve and its correlation to predicting recessions, the risk of recession is still elevated, explains Collin. The yield curve is inverted when long-term treasury yields fall below short-term treasury yields.

For example, the 10-year treasury yield is about 3-1/2% %, but the two-year treasury yield is about 4%. And the yield curve tends to invert once the markets begin pricing in Fed rate cuts and tends to send long-term yields lower. Long-term yields like that 10-year treasury yield are often based on Fed Funds Rate expectations over the next 10 years or so. So if the Fed Funds Rate is 5% like it is today, but the Fed Funds Rate is expected to be lower in a year or two, you’ll tend to see longer term yields decline to sort of average out what the Fed Funds Rate might be over the next number of years.

An inverted yield curve is usually followed by a recession. When the Fed hikes rates, it often slows growth along with inflation. It doesn’t necessarily just bring inflation down. When the Fed hikes rates, things in the economy and financial markets tend to break. Maybe the economy slows, maybe corporate defaults pick up, but any way you slice it, there can be negative consequences from Fed rate hikes. So when things break, the Fed then tends to cut rates to stimulate the economy, which can un-invert the yield curve. For example, short-term Treasury bills or treasury notes could fall if and when the Fed cuts rates and they tend to fall below that level of long-term yields.

Now, we think that’s what’s led to the yield curve being less inverted now, it’s really just due to expectations of sooner than expected rate cuts, so short-term rates have fallen more than long-term yields have declined. But if an inverted yield curve is usually followed by a recession, that doesn’t mean that the fact that the yield curve is becoming less inverted is sending a positive signal about the economy.

Just the presence of rate cut expectations tells us that the likelihood of a recession is on the rise, mainly because the Fed cuts rates when they need to, when they need to stimulate the economy. And we think, unfortunately, the Fed will tighten enough right now, not just to slow inflation, but they’ll likely weaken the labor market, which can lead to slower consumer spending, and then the risk of recession is still there.

References:

 

Measuring Success in Life

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“How many of the people you want to have love you actually do love you?” ~ Warren Buffett

The More You Give Love Away, The More You Get

“When you get to my age, you’ll really measure your success in life by how many of the people you want to have love you actually do love you. I know people who have a lot of money, and they get testimonial dinners and they get hospital wings named after them. But the truth is that nobody in the world loves them. If you get to my age in life and nobody thinks well of you, I don’t care how big your bank account is, your life is a disaster.”

“That’s the ultimate test of how you have lived your life. The trouble with love is that you can’t buy it. You can buy sex. You can buy testimonial dinners. You can buy pamphlets that say how wonderful you are. But the only way to get love is to be lovable. It’s very irritating if you have a lot of money. You’d like to think you could write a check: I’ll buy a million dollars’ worth of love. But it doesn’t work that way. The more you give love away, the more you get.”

Warren Buffett, CEO and Chairman, Berkshire Hathaway

Source: Tom Popomaronis, “Warren Buffett says this is ‘the ultimate test of how you have lived your life’—and Bill Gates agrees”, CNBC,  Sep 1 2019. https://www.cnbc.com/2019/09/01/billionaires-warren-buffett-bill-gates-agree-this-is-the-ultimate-test-of-how-you-have-lived-your-life.html

Consistency is key to building better habits! Always be consistent, it will helps you a lot. Maintain progressive consistency.

According to Bill Gates, measuring success in life relates to:

  • ‘Did I devote enough time to my family?’ Money can buy you many things like financial freedom and control of your time, but it can’t buy you an extra minute in the day or the love of family and friends.
  • ‘Did I learn enough new things?’ It’s essential to maintain an incredible appetite for learning and yearning for growth. Lifelong learning is essential for continuous growth, success and happiness.
  • ‘Did I develop new friendships and deepen old ones?’ A number of studies have even suggested that there are valuable benefits in cultivating deep relationships. “Our relationships and how happy we are in our relationships has a powerful influence on our health,” Robert Waldinger, a psychiatrist and professor at Harvard Medical School, told The Harvard Gazette in 2017. “Taking care of your body is important, but tending to your relationships is a form of self-care, too.”

Source:  https://www.cnbc.com/2019/07/06/bill-gates-measures-his-quality-of-life-by-asking-himself-3-questions.html

Finding Purpose

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“The purpose of life is not to be happy. It is to be useful, to be honorable, to be compassionate, to have it make some difference that you have lived and lived well.” ~ Ralph Waldo Emerson

To find your purpose, ask yourself what you care deeply about. By focusing on purpose, you can align your life and work with your deepest values, and also relieve yourself of the expectation that life or the long slog of a career will be all (or even mostly) happiness and sunshine.

The Purpose of Life in Retirement

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“The purpose of life is not to be happy. It is to be useful, to be honorable, to be compassionate, to have it make some difference that you have lived and lived well.” ― Ralph Waldo Emerson

For some people, the purpose of life may be to make the world a better place. Others may believe that the point of life is to find and achieve personal fulfillment. And some may feel that the point of life is simply to enjoy it as much as possible.

Many scientists would say that the purpose of life is to evolve and to live a life of purpose, according to Psychology Today magazine.

Evolution is the process that allowed organisms to survive and thrive. Humans, along with every living animal or plant, owe our existence to it.

Our purpose is to “evolve” during our lifetime because that is consistent with our evolutionary purpose.

Thus, the purpose of life?” is that we are here so that we can continue to live, adapt, learn, and grow. A purpose of life, and our purpose, is to continue to evolve.

We Evolved to Evolve

“Evolution” is a process of learning, adapting, and growing to be more effective and efficient, we see evolution everywhere.

Evolution is fundamental to every living organism. Inherent to our existence is that we learn, adapt, and grow. Additionally, maintaining healthy personal relationships is existential to our existence

Health, happiness, and longevity are the payoffs for this. Since our biological evolution is the foundation of our existence, a purpose of our lives is to continue to “evolve” during our lifetime by learning and growing.

There are several ways to grow, adapt and learn (to find purpose) in life, such as:.

  • Helping Others – Volunteering your time to help others can be a source of purpose.
  • Cultivating Relationships – Spending time with friends and family. Healthy and supportive interpersonal relationships are essential for both physical and mental health.
  • Continuing to Learn and Grow – Henry Ford stated, “Anyone who stops learning is old — whether this happens at twenty or at eighty. Anyone who keeps on learning not only remains young but becomes constantly more valuable — regardless of physical capacity.” To learn is to grow.  
  • Pursuing Your Interests – Pursuing hobbies or activities you enjoy can be an effective way to bring meaning into your life. Focus on doing work that is meaningful to you, whether it involves pursuing a career that you love, developing your creative skills, or simply enjoying your leisurely pastimes.
  • Building Your Awareness – Becoming more aware of your own thoughts, interests, and connections to the world around you can also be helpful when you are questioning the point of life.
  • Practicing Gratitude – Practicing gratitude, or the act of feeling and expressing thankfulness for the things that you appreciate in life has been shown to have a range of benefits. It can strengthen relationships, improve happiness, boost resilience, and improve overall health.

References:

  1. https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/tech-happy-life/202010/what-is-the-purpose-life
  2. https://www.verywellmind.com/whats-the-point-of-life-why-you-might-feel-this-way-5272182

April 2023 – Financial Literacy Month

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April is Financial Literacy Month. It’s a month to raise awareness around financial literacy and wellness, and highlighting the importance of financial planning and of developing  healthy financial habits.

A new National Financial Educators Council (NFEC) survey found that lacking financial literacy — and not knowing how to manage personal finances — carried a high cost in 2022.

The NFEC survey showed that 38% of Americans said their lack of financial literacy cost them $500 or more, and a whopping 23% said it cost them more than $10,000 — a steep increase from the 10.7% who said the same in 2021.

As a result, the estimated average amount of money that financial illiteracy cost Americans was $1,819 in 2022 — the highest average since the first annual survey took place six years ago. This figure correlates with record-high inflation rates and other economic challenges, the NFEC noted.

In terms of common costly mistakes, overdraft fees were prominent: the median overdraft fee on a debit card is $34, according to the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB).

According to the survey, which cites CFPB data, most debit card overdraft fees happen on transactions of $24 or less — and American consumers end up spending $17 billion a year on overdraft and non-sufficient funds fees.

References:

  1. https://www.nasdaq.com/articles/financial-literacy-or-lack-thereof-can-make-the-difference-of-%2410000-or-more-a-year-on

Bond Market Volatility

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A bond is a loan made to a corporation or government in exchange for regular interest payments. The bond issuer agrees to pay back the loan by a specific date. Bonds can be traded on the secondary market. The bond market is usually where investors venture when looking for stability, security, and a lower risk profile as a part of their investment portfolio.

What happens in the bond market has real implications for equity investors and for the economy in general. A bond essentially represents an IOU—a promise to repay a loan on a certain date, along with specified interest payments along the way.

Prices and interest rates for an individual bond depend on a variety of factors, including positive or negative news about the issuer or changes in its credit rating.

But at a higher level, returns in the bond markets are much more related to interest rate changes—and perceptions about what will happen to interest rates in the future. When interest rates fall, the prices of existing bonds go up. And when interest rates rise, the opposite happens: If your loan is earning you less money than someone could make by giving a brand-new loan, they’re going to pay less to buy your loan. This creates volatility in the bond market.

However, the volatility seen in the bond market in the recent short term hasn’t been seen in decades.

Volatility has returned to the bond sector. And, some of the “rules” that have held true in the bond market for decades have been overturned. For example, early last month in March 2023, the year U.S. Treasury bond yield briefly ticked above 5%, which is the highest it had been in more than 15 years. A couple of weeks later it was back below 4%.

In early March, Fed Chair Jerome Powell stated in testimony before Congress that the peak Fed Funds Rate was likely to be higher than many initially expected, explains Collin Martin, director and fixed income strategist, Schwab Center for Financial Research. And when Powell suggested that, investors began to act, and they sent up treasury yields to where they expected the Fed Funds Rate to reach down the road. Now, like most investments, yield comes down to supply and demand. And following the comments from Powell, treasury investors demanded higher yields then, in the short term, so that they weren’t stuck holding investments with lower yields if the Fed did hike more than they initially anticipated.

The dynamics changed pretty suddenly with the collapse of Silicon Valley Bank pulling down yields sharply, because of concerns about financial stability, Collin stated.

Now, the Fed has a dual mandate of price stability, which can be considered inflation, and maximum employment. But the Fed also has an unofficial mandate of financial stability, and the collapse and failure of a few banks led to concern that stability could deteriorate.

So investors totally shifted their expectations for Fed policy, and instead of expecting a peak rate of 5-1/2% or more, expectations were that the peak rate might only be 5% or so. In fact, bpnd investors weren’t even sure if the Fed would hike at all going forward, and they began to price in rate cuts sooner than expected. Now, if the Fed was only expected to hold its rate at 5% or so, and then cut it soon, investors pulled down those expectations and were willing to accept a lower yield and lock in that lower yield for certainty rather than risk what happens if the Fed cuts rates down the road. And that’s what pulled their prices up and yields down because of those expectations.

References:

  1. Volatile Bond Market Signaling Changes to Economy podcast transcript, Charles Schwab WashingtonWise, April 6, 2023.
  2. https://investor.vanguard.com/investor-resources-education/portfolio-management/bond-markets#modal-bond

Successful Investor’s Psychological Mindset

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“Doing well with money isn’t necessarily about what you know. It’s about how you behave. And behavior is hard to teach, even to really smart people.” ~ Morgan Housel, The Psychology of Money

Individuals must understand that there is a psychological mindset that the successful investor tends to have.

The successful investor will focus on probabilities, intrinsic values and safety of margin while letting decisions be ruled by rational, as opposed to emotional, thinking.

Investors’ emotions are their worst enemy.

The psychology of money is the study of our behavior with money. Billionaire investor Warren Buffett contends that the key to overcoming emotions is being able to retain your belief in the fundamentals of the business, and not get too concerned about the stock market price.

Investors should realize that there is a certain psychological mindset that they should have if they want to be successful, and try to implement that mindset. Dave Ramsey has said that building wealth is “20% head knowledge and 80% behavior.”

Value investing mindset

Value investing derives the intrinsic value of a common stock independent of its market price. By using a company’s factors such as its free cash flow, earnings, return on invested capital, and dividend payouts, the intrinsic value of a stock can be found and compared to its market value. If the intrinsic value is more than the current price, the investor should buy and hold until a mean reversion occurs.

Mean reversion is the theory that over time, the market price and intrinsic price will converge towards each other until the stock price reflects its true value. By buying an undervalued stock, the investor is, in effect, paying less for it and should sell when the price is trading at its intrinsic worth. This effect of price convergence is only bound to happen in an efficient market.

The fundamental principle of value investments lies in the ability of the markets to eventually correct to their intrinsic values. Common stocks are not going to remain inflated or bottomed-out forever despite the emotions and irrationality of investors in the market.

References:

  1. https://www.investopedia.com/terms/b/bengraham.asp
  2. Morgan Housel, The Psychology of Money. Harriman House, Great Britain, September 8, 2020.
  3. https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0857197681/ref=as_li_tl_nodl?