One of the best aspects of having a Health Savings Account (HSA) is the control you you have over medical care. If you want to have a medical procedure or test done that is not covered by your health insurance, you pay for it with pre-tax money from your health savings account. One of the processes of aging that scientists have been learning more about in recent years is glycation, and the formation of Advanced Glycation Endproducts, or AGEs. Here's how to reduce this harmful process, and a simple test you can pay for from your Health Savings Account to see how you're doing.

What is "Glycation" and what are AGEs?

When we take a piece of bread and put it in the toaster, it slowly turns brown. This is the result of a natural process called the "Maillard reaction", in which sugars react with proteins. It is this process that gives flavor to pizza crust, roasted coffee, and beer.

The same process naturally happens in the human body. (So in a sense, we all slowly "brown" as we age). When a protein in your body is "glycated", it has a sugar molecule attached to it, and can then bond to another protein in your body in a process called "cross-linking". These damaged proteins result in the formation of Advanced Glycation Endproducts.

Exposure to AGEs in the body contributes to inflammation and to a large variety of age-related diseases, including cataracts, joint stiffness, Alzheimer's disease, and cardiovascular diseases. Some AGEs can increase the risk of cancer, and others increase the risk of auto-immune diseases such as rheumatoid arthritis.

Reduce AGEs in your Food

When experimental mice are fed a low-AGE diet, they have better cardiovascular health, better kidney health, better blood sugar management, and they live longer. AGE formation is increased when foods are cooked at high temperatures, and for longer periods of time. You can significantly reduce AGEs created in food preparation by using boiling, poaching, or stewing rather than frying or grilling.

So one strategy is to simply reduce your consumption of "browned" foods. So for instance, fried shrimp will have way more harmful AGE compounds than boiled shrimp.

How to Reduce AGE Formation in your Body

AGE formation is particularly high in diabetics, due to uncontrolled sugar levels in the body. This is one of the reasons why they suffer from increased rates kidney disease, vision loss, and cardiovascular disease. Millions of Americans who have not been diagnosed as diabetic still have glucose handling difficulties, typically diagnosed as "metabolic syndrome". It is becoming more evident that a diet low in foods that raise blood sugar rapidly (typically the "white" foods like pasta, bread, sugar, and rice) will reduce a person's risk of diabetes or metabolic syndrome. This in turn will also reduce your body's AGE formation.

Supplements You Can Take

Numerous dietary supplements have now been shown to reduce glycation, cross-linking, and AGE formation. Some experts recommend the following supplements, typically 500 mg to 1 gram of each, per day: Carnosine, Benfotiamine, Alpha-lipoic acid, Acetyl-l-carnitine, and Curcumin.

If your health care practitioner recommends supplements for the prevention or treatment of a specific health condition, you can pay for them from your HSA.

A common blood test that diabetics have done is Glycated Hemoglobin A1c. This measures how much the red blood cells have become glycated over the past few months, and is an indicator of average blood sugar levels.

Stay Healthy, Grow Your Health Savings Account

So be proactive - fund your HSA to the max, do what you can to optimize your health, and let your Health Savings Account grow.