Let’s not beat around the bush here. It is a sunny Tuesday morning so what better time than to answer this simple question – Can we be healthy and live to be 150?
It used to be even asking this question moved you into the realm of fringe, sci-fi thinkers. However, when the New York Times starts writing about this, you know it has gone mainstream…
“Meanwhile, it is a pleasant and not wholly unfounded thought that, just possibly, a single drug might combat every degenerative disease of Western civilization.”
- Quest for Long Life Gains Scientific Respect, New York Times 9/28/09
Wow, you have to admit that is a pretty strong comment from a New York Times Science writer.
Want to Live Forever? Stop Eating Now!
There are many theories on aging and disease, but one theme that is pretty well established is that eating makes us sick! It turns out all the reactions set off by our metabolism of food are not necessarily healthy for the long term survival of our body. The more we eat, the more we set off a chain of reactions that ultimately lead to disease and death. Sorry to anyone who is reading this over lunch!
The converse is that calorie restriction is one of the best ways to increase life span and stop or limit disease. There are entire groups who practice various forms of extreme calorie restriction. They eat just the bare minimum that the body needs and almost no sugars. Will they live to be 150? Only time will tell.
The Problem With Extreme Calorie Restriction… We Like to Eat!
I don’t think I am breaking any news when I report that we like to eat – a lot! Obesity rates are skyrocketing and everyone knows that obesity is tied to numerous health issues. So, we know over eating is bad for us – but we just can’t stop. It is hard to believe that if we knew under eating was good for us, we would be able to start under eating. Even if scientist tomorrow could guarantee that extreme calorie restriction would allow you to live to 150, most people would not be able to follow the diet.
The Answer – Take a Pill!
Scientist are hard at work trying to give us what we always want – a simple solution in a pill. We will spare you our lecture on why we need to take more responsibility for our own health and not always look to pills to solve our problems. Let’s just stay on the facts…
Resveratrol and Other Sirtuin Activators
One of the more interesting approaches to slowing aging and disease is the use of calorie restriction mimicking compounds. Scientist have found that the body releases Sirtuins (small proteins) when faced with famine. It is believed that these Sirtuins have positive health benefits and explain why calories restriction (which of course produces Sirtuins) can increase lifespan.
There has been a great deal of research and publicity surrounding Resveratrol – a compound found in red grapes, wine and other foods. Early tests have been very positive on the ability of Resveratrol to trigger the release of Sirtuins. In tests on mice, Resveratrol was able to mimic the effects of calorie restriction and increase lifespan.
The Race to End Aging and Disease
Resveratrol is a natural product and can not be patented by the drug companies – so what do the drug companies do? Make Resveratrol like chemicals that can be patented! The clear leader in this field is Sirtris Pharmaceuticals. The company is developing drugs that mimic resveratrol, and other Sirtuin activators. While it is still 5-7 years away from having a drug available, they are confident:
“In five or six or seven years,” said Christoph Westphal, Sirtris’s other co-founder, “there will be drugs that prolong longevity.”
- Quest for Long Life Gains Scientific Respect, New York Times 9/28/09
Common Sense Lessons Learned From The Quest to End Aging
Where will science and medicine take us on our quest to live longer and healthier? Who knows. What we do know is that some common sense lessons can be learned from this research. We need to stop over eating and start under eating. Even if calorie restriction is not the answer to an endless life, we already know that obesity is the answer to a shorter life.
We also need to eat more real and whole foods. Highly processed foods and food loaded with sugars are tough on our body. Think of our body as a furnace. We can burn pretty much anything we put in our body, but somethings burn easy and some are hard. The more sugar, chemicals and processed the food – the harder to burn and more negative by-products are produced. Stick with natural wholesome food and your body can burn it clean. It sounds silly, but maybe living a longer healthier life is as simple as eating better and eating less.
Additional Resources:
Quest for Long Life Gains Scientific Respect, New York Times 9/28/09
First Acai and Now Resveratrol – is This Deja Vu All Over Again?
Email This Post To A Friend!
