EAT YOURSELF YOUNGER

Controlling what and how much you eat can deliver impressive benefits. Try fruit, veg and cutting down the calories.

Fat cells cause inflammation by leaking out inflammatory cytokines that stimulate the immune system and contribute to inflammaging. Added to this, as we get older, stem cells also become fat cells. So you can have fat accumulation around your organs even if you are not an obese person. However, eating a healthy diet will help. Dementia expert Dale Bredesen encourages his patients to eat large quantities of fruit, veg and non-farmed fish.

ANTIOXIDANTS

Free radicals are unstable oxygen molecules, produced as a by- product of normal cell function, which some believe prevent other molecules in the body working properly, damaging skin and ageing cells prematurely. In studies, people given big doses of antioxidants remained healthy for longer, but it didn’t extend their lifespan at all. Foods rich in antioxidants include fruit, vegetables, pulses and grains. Consuming more of them is undoubtedly a good thing, although free radicals are no longer seen as the key to ageing, but rather as part of the broader picture.

RESVERATROL

A compound made naturally by many plants – notably red grapes, blueberries, mulberries, cranberries and peanuts – has been linked to the regeneration of senescent cells. Resveratrol is found in red wine and chocolate – but, sadly, not in great enough quantities to make a difference to your health. In lab tests on senescent cells at Exeter University in 2017, resveratrol has yielded remarkable results, restoring zombie cells to their youthful function. “This is the first step in trying to make people live normal lifespans, but with health for their entire lives,” said Professor Lorna Harries, who led the research.

CALORIE RESTRICTION

Studies of multiple species have shown that calorie restriction can extend life. A trial in macaque monkeys has found that calorie restriction makes them live about three years longer than normal. This would translate to about nine years in humans. Some 7,000 CRONies (standing for Calorie Restriction with Optimum Nutrition) belong to the international CR Society, which generates lots of useful data for researchers studying the effects of a Spartan diet on human beings – they restrict their intake to between 1500 and 1800 calories a day.

“Studies of multiple species have shown calorie restriction can extend life.”