What Are Polyphenols, and Why Are They Getting So Much Attention?
Over the past several weeks, I've been digging deeper into some of the science behind healthy aging. We've talked about NAD+, mitochondria, cellular energy, and most recently, oxidative stress. The more you explore these subjects, the more you begin to realize how interconnected they are.
That brings me to another word that comes up frequently in conversations about nutrition and healthy aging: polyphenols.
Unlike NAD+, polyphenols aren't something our bodies make. They're naturally occurring compounds found in plants, and if you eat fruits, vegetables, herbs, tea, coffee, cocoa, nuts, or many other plant foods, you're already consuming them.
Scientists have identified thousands of polyphenols, and they've become an interesting area of nutritional research because of the many ways these compounds interact with biological processes in the body.
Why Do Plants Make Polyphenols?
One of the things I find interesting about polyphenols is that plants aren't producing them for our benefit.
Plants use these compounds for their own purposes. Polyphenols can contribute to colour and flavour, help protect plants from environmental stresses, and play roles in their interactions with insects, microbes, sunlight, and other parts of their environment.
Those compounds are one of the reasons berries have their deep reds and blues, why tea has its characteristic flavour, and why many colourful plant foods contain such a remarkable variety of naturally occurring substances. When we eat those foods, we consume those compounds too.
For years, much of the conversation around polyphenols focused on their antioxidant properties. That's still part of the story, particularly when we're discussing oxidative stress, but researchers now understand that the relationship between polyphenols and the human body is considerably more complicated than simply thinking of them as little antioxidants floating around neutralizing free radicals.
Researchers are studying how different polyphenols interact with cellular signalling, inflammatory processes, metabolism, the gut microbiome, and other systems throughout the body. Different polyphenols behave differently, which is one reason there probably isn't a single "best" polyphenol we all need to consume.
This Is Another Reason Variety Matters
You've probably heard the advice to "eat the rainbow." It sounds simple, but there's some good reasoning behind it.
Different plant foods provide different combinations of vitamins, minerals, fibre, and phytochemicals, including polyphenols. Blueberries don't contain exactly the same compounds as grapes, and neither provides precisely the same combination you'll find in tea, cocoa, apples, or leafy greens.
Instead of trying to identify one superfood that contains everything we need, eating a wide variety of plant foods gives us exposure to a much broader range of these compounds. It's another example of something I keep noticing as I learn more about longevity: new science often brings us back to some very old advice.
Eat your fruits and vegetables. Apparently, our mothers were onto something.
Polyphenols and the Vivix Story
Polyphenols are also where my own interest in this area of healthy aging really began. Long before I was talking about NAD+, NMN, BioAge, or many of the other subjects I've been writing about recently, I was talking about Vivix.
The original Vivix formula was developed around a proprietary blend of polyphenols from sources including muscadine grapes and other plant extracts. At the time, what caught my attention was the research Shaklee was doing around these compounds and cellular health.
I've been involved with Shaklee for a long time, and I've watched the science of nutrition change considerably over those years. Vivix was one of those products that made me pay closer attention to what researchers were learning about the relationship between plant compounds, oxidative stress, and the processes associated with healthy aging. That was years before NAD+ became the wellness buzzword it is today.
Looking back, I think that's part of the reason I find the current longevity conversation so interesting. We're not necessarily abandoning what we learned before. We're adding new layers to it.
From Vivix to Vivix+
That brings the story into the present. This year, Shaklee introduced Vivix+, which builds on the polyphenol foundation of Vivix while adding an NAD+ Boost Complex containing NMN. I've written previously about NAD+ and why researchers are so interested in its role in cellular energy metabolism and aging.
For me, understanding the history makes the new product considerably more interesting. Vivix+ isn't where the conversation about cellular health began. The original Vivix was already focused on polyphenols and helping protect cells from oxidative stress. Now we're learning more about additional aspects of cellular aging, including NAD+ metabolism, mitochondrial function, and the many interconnected systems that help our cells function as we get older. Science keeps moving forward, and our understanding moves forward with it.
Food Still Comes First
Whenever I write about supplements, I think this point is worth repeating: supplements don't replace a healthy diet.
Polyphenols are another excellent reason to eat more plants. Berries, grapes, apples, colourful vegetables, herbs, tea, nuts, seeds, and other plant foods provide far more than one isolated compound. They come packaged with fibre, vitamins, minerals, and thousands of naturally occurring substances that interact in ways we're still working to understand.
A supplement can be a useful addition to a healthy lifestyle, particularly when it's backed by good research and formulated thoughtfully, but it should be exactly that: an addition.
The foundation still matters.
Final Thought
One of the things I've enjoyed most about digging into longevity science is discovering that many of the subjects we're talking about today aren't really separate conversations.
Mitochondria connect to cellular energy. NAD+ connects to energy metabolism and other cellular processes. Oxidative stress connects to how our cells respond to damage and environmental challenges. Polyphenols bring us back to nutrition and the remarkable variety of compounds plants produce naturally. The deeper you go, the more connected everything becomes.
While the science can get complicated, the practical message doesn't have to be. Eat a variety of nutritious foods. Include plenty of plants. Stay active. Maintain your strength. Sleep well. Manage your stress. Then, if you're interested in additional nutritional support, learn about the science behind the products you're considering rather than simply following the latest trend.
That's been my approach for a long time, and the more I learn about healthy aging, the more sense it makes.
Here's to continuing to learn and giving our bodies the support they need for the years ahead,
Bob
Bob Ferguson
(913) 208−6357
bob@fergleads.com
