Anti-Aging
Do You Know Where And What Your Vagus Is?
By Darlene Siddons
Feb 24, 2008

The definition of vagus: vagus (Latin, vagus = wandering) cranial nerve X (CN X) a mixed nerve that leaves the head and neck to innervate gastrointestinal tract (pharynx, esophagus, stomach) respiratory tract (larynx, lungs), cardiac (heart) and abdominal viscera. This mixed nerve has sensory, motor and autonomic functions of viscera (glands, digestion, heart rate).

Yes, you have one of these as we all do, it is a long wandering nerve and it is the primary nerve connecting the brain along with every organ of the body. It mediates your heartbeat, your digestion system, elimination and basically all automatic functions of your body. They also share the exploration of how the state of your nervous system and your immune system contribute to health and longevity.

The vagus is directly associated with our aging, it monitors our nervous system and immune system which directly contributes to our health and longevity. So as we age the biggest issues involve inflammatory conditions in our bodies, and that is associated directly with stress, living in the fast lane and improper diet lifestyles. So here we have one more area of our bodies that we can keep healthy and active to prolong our aging process and once again keeping it healthy is the reduction of stress and a total healthy lifestyle.

What can we do to soothe the vagus and keep from premature aging and to live a long and happy life? It really is simple, one is meditation, Chi-gong, guided visualization and yoga, they all are fun, and are also really easy to do and only takes a little time out of your day.

Thought for the Day: "We are coming to understand health not as the absence of disease, but rather as the process by which individuals maintain their sense of coherence (i.e. sense that life in comprehensible, manageable, and meaningful) and ability to function in the face of changes in themselves and their relationships with their environment. –Aaron Antonovsky-