At 60 years old, founder/owner  Patricia Mastroddi of Pulse Nutritional is defying the aging process.  Even though she insists she is not extraordinary, as her friends and clients often tell her, we concluded it was simply not true…Without even crows feet, no discernible grays, a 23 1/2 waist and weight at 115 lbs. at 5’5″ and with lots of energy, Patricia is clearly in the upper percentile of those that are “gracefully aging.”   Extremely.

So we asked Patricia….what is the secret?  Water, Food, Genetics?? Hitting the Gym 7 days a Week? Or you going to attribute all this to your nutraceuticals?

Surprisingly, No.  Patricia just quietly replied….”Balance.”  Okay, we understand that word but could you expand….we know you can most likely stand on your head and still do a cartwheel but just “balance”?  Patricia expanded for us.

“I do not have a prescription per say for getting to 60 at the same body weight I had at 21…and with the same waistline and amount of energy….I just do what I learned to do my entire life.  I grew up with Mediterranean parents that did not believe in canned vegetables, mostly all fresh and plenty of them…from escarole to asparagus to arugula …to ones I was not so crazy about but acquired a taste for over the years.  And my mom being such a great cook helped!  She could make everything taste great…just by adding olive oil, garlic, spices and fresh herbs.  Even beets, which I did not like, she would prepare in a balsamic vinegar and olive oil with herbs and fresh green beans…totally yummy!!

“Admittedly,” she concluded “I was the girl in 5th grade who would open her brown bag lunch knowing full well there was no ring dings, twinkies, or chips in there…rather an apple, banana, pear.  I did not like that or that every night’s dinner finale was fresh fruit or canned pears (which I did like).  But occasionally my mother would make an icebox cake with graham crackers and chocolate pudding. And, while no soda was allowed during the week, we sometimes could have some on the weekends…but not often.  I think I felt I was in “healthy eating” prison, but today I really do thank my parents, particularly my mother for giving me the basis for a healthy, nutritious way of eating.

While she did bend somewhat by the time my youngest sister was a teen…and there appeared more cookies, treats….she was still judicious about doling them out and ensuring we ate healthily overall.  So that was a great foundation and learning experience for my future diet.  Because, like my mother, I love cooking, I do prepare fresh food almost every night…not boring….but healthy.

Add to that that we were not allowed to sit in front of the “tube”  watching shows very often, we went out, inhaled fresh air and ran our legs off.   In my case, I found playing with the boys…let’s face it, they were more fun – they climbed ledges playing army, swung over the brook on a rope and just had more adventurous fun in my opinion.  Oh, don’t get me wrong….I had a Barbie and the Barbie corvette and her counterpart Ken – and yes her myriad of friends – but they were no where as much fun! So I was usually pretty much in motion and to this day cannot do my desk work without getting up every hour or so….and fitting in a 20-30 minute dance routine right in front of my computer to various popular artists on Spotify…. Just a way of life…

Patricia continued, almost without exhaling (she does joke herself she is seldom at a loss for words) “I also think despite the stresses we all have in life, my parents had the good judgment to expose me to faith – and regardless if I practice that ‘exact’ same doctrine today is not the main factor here. It was the exposure to faith and also to other people’s beliefs.  I personally believe in Jesus as God, this is true, and I do worship…via the bible, books, services.  But more importantly, faith as held me together in many ways and in many instances.  I guess they call it faith as it is unseen yet believed. And I do. For various reasons seen and unseen.  It is a lifeline for me.  When I dealt with 20 or more cancer patients per day, I could tell which persons needed an infusion of faith and would impart it.  That is the wonderful thing about my business…you can talk about diet, exercise, sleep, and importantly the mind and heart/soul.  It is very gratifying to me.  I am honored to have been instrumental when possible assisting with both addressing prostate cancer/cancer as well as imparting hope through faith.   I feel very privileged to say the least.” We noted her article on Prostate Cancer on her BLOG and the studies showing faith indeed has a positive impact and she lit up that we in fact did read it.  She mentioned her Wikihow article with Urologist Dr. Katz on the GCP and ImmunoKinoko (AHCC)  and hoped we read that also.

“And then there is Sleep.”  (Here Patricia hesitates for the first time).  “My downfall since running Pulse Nutritional since 1998.  When you are working 80 plus hours per week the first several years you do not sleep a lot.  That fostered a propensity to be awake later than I was previously used to, even on weekends and days that I did not have to be at the computer or phone working.  I found myself in the habit of my head not hitting the pillow until after midnight or 1 a.m.  Not good as the most restorative hours of sleep are between 10pm and 1am.   I was fortunate though to not have to start work until 10 am – my employees arrived around that time.  So I could sleep from 1am until 9 and still get in around 8 hours…usually less though.  However, studies show that those people that sleep 7 1/2 every night have the most longevity overall so I was not sleeping the proper hours – which is important – but at least I was sleeping enough hours.

So are you getting more zzzz’s now, we asked? “Hmmmmm….Today? Well, no,  I am still in the habit of reading, blogging, researching, and not turning my brain off early enough.  I am slowly changing this over the last few months – it is hard after years of a less than ideal habit, but I am doing it!  I wake up earlier and that in turn causes me to want to go to sleep at night at a more reasonable time.  I recommend all remember that Sleep is CRITICAL.  Try to get 7-8 hours of restful sleep each night.  Some doctors feel this is even more important than food, especially when battling disease…and of course it is wonderful for staying more youthful.  I read somewhere that Sophia Loren still takes an hour or so nap every day.  I don’t think I can pull that off  as sleeping during the day is very hard for me, but even a catnap is sometimes a real boost to the brain and energy for the remainder of the day.  And some days are long in this business.   I have not perfected the “catnap” technique but working on that also.   At least I am heading for my pillow earlier and earlier each night  – a good start.”

We ask Patricia about her Nutraceuticals.  Does she merely consult and offer them or does she actually take them herself?  She looked particularly surprised at us and her look of confusion mixed with disappointment was obvious.  It was as if we asked her if she loved her children or took a shower each day!

“Of course I take them!”  I have these wonderful, award-winning, doctor formulated, all natural clinically proven products at my fingertips.  Products I carefully researched for years….what more could I want?”  She looked pensive for a moment.  “Now, which ones do I love most? Well, that is a hard question….as they are all very different and do various things…and of course, some are more critical than others based on one’s individual health needs. ”

We asked her to pick a few she liked that were not the large selling immune modulators like GCP and ImmunoKinoko (AHCC) she specializes in and more so used by cancer patients and others treating disorders.

“Well,  I am very impressed with the Award-Winning METASOL (Oligonol) for its anti-aging capabilities.  Many don’t realize it is made from the Lychee fruit… renowned in China for the fruit’s healing properties it is also baked into bread, cookies, etc. there as they know how wonderfully important it is to the body.”  Excitedly, Patricia continues “it is the first supplement whereby polyphenol polymers have been successfully converted into oligomers, molecules with superior bioavailability and much greater biological activity …simply put in terms that are easier to understand, she continues,  Metasol^®  is a superior antioxidant that is much more quickly absorbed in the human bloodstream…so greater antioxidant capacity! It provides improved lucidity and sleep, improves cognitive function, promotes  skin improvement (to prevent and reduce wrinkles and freckles) increases blood circulation. helps in the reduction of and fast recovery from fatigue and  aids metabolic support.  Best of all it is natural – as are ALL of our products. So Safe, with no negative side effects or interactions ever.  And, importantly it is a NutrAward Recipient.  A superior Anti-Aging Product I love.”

She looks somewhat pensive …..”Don’t misunderstand, we have some of the best nutraceuticals – or if you prefer the word supplements – available but never are they substitutes for good health habits.  But, they are a wonderful addition to an already good lifestyle!”

Can you explain we asked.  “Sure…in other words, you clean out your car, wax it, replace the fluids, tires when they wear out….right?”  (We looked at each other as I am not sure I know what fluids are in my car..) Well, same for the body she continued.  “Take our SRCo-Q10 for instance. (Unisorb-Q10 in their Health Care Line).  The body simply cannot make enough Co-Q10 via diet unless one ate 5 lbs. of peanuts or sardines each day.  So that is one naturally occurring enzyme that needs supplementation.  Predominantly used for heart patients to oxygenate the heart and lungs, it is now used by many in lesser dose for that reason and overall heart health…and because it conducts energy from cell to cell in the body…so more energy!”

Another example would be our large -selling PureBalance Serotonin (Serocort in the HCP line).  It is obvious by her eyes growing wider she loves this product! “Truly a wonderful help to many in supplementing serotonin in their brain as most of us are deficient as well so this will increase our mood to promote happiness.  It is also an excellent aid to better sleep, and balancing cortisol/serotonin levels. ” She continues excitedly, “think of all the women and men that are taking diet aids, other prescriptions that may do just as well on this product.  I am not saying if someone is bi-polar this is the answer…but someone that recognizes their mood is off, wants to control binge eating and lose weight and hey, who does not want better sleep?”  We certainly could not argue with her.

“Hey, Look” she said “I don’t want to bore you by going through the myriad of award-winning nutraceuitcals we have but simply put, Pulse Nutritional’s goal started in 1998 with the mission of assisting cancer patients.  We have now grown to now include products that are needed and wanted by just about everyone….our BIFILON is the most researched probiotic on the market and used clinically as well. A wonderful way to keep your stomach flora healthy – so critical.  And the Award-Winner VitaPQQ (MITAOVIVA in the HCP line) is the last B Vitamin discovered by man that is so important for protecting the mitochondrial of the cell…faster recovery from fatigue…aging better.  Plus our uniquely compiled BONECAL (BONEFORTE) is wonderful to protect that bone density!  The list goes on and on but you can read about it on my web or my blog and that leaves more time for us to listen to some music, run over the farm market before dinner and even get a walk in with Leo (Patricia’s spry – like her – 12-year old cockapoo dog)…….and then…”

Well, we certainly got a pretty in-depth look at the woman behind Pulse Nutritional…learned about her habits, her values, her relaxation techniques, her passion for helping others – and her own peers, the baby boomers, face each year healthier and happier!

The Week of Patricia’s 60th Birthday July 2013