How To Eat For Longevity

 "You are what you eat." This decades-old proverb is true not only regarding general health and fitness but also regarding longevity. Recent scientific findings further support this by showing that around 75% of the variance we see in life span is influenced by lifestyle choices and only 25% by genetic factors. The foods we consume directly affect the onset of age-related diseases and the rate at which we age. A recent 2022 study found that following a healthy diet can extend a person's life by 13 years compared to the average life span of most Americans. We've put together a list of 5 essential nutrition tips you can implement today to slow your aging and increase your longevity.

Eat a (Mostly) Plant-Based Diet

Fruits, vegetables, and legumes are high in fiber, antioxidants, and phytochemicals that promote gut health and reduce inflammation in the body. Studies have shown that a mostly plant-based diet protects against chronic age-related diseases such as heart disease, stroke, cancer, and type II diabetes. In addition, fruits and vegetables are essential for weight management, as multiple studies have shown that their high fiber content promotes weight loss and regulates blood sugar levels. 

Our tip: Try to increase the fruits, vegetables, and legumes in your diet. Around half your plate should consist of these highly nutritious foods. If you find it hard to eat enough fruits and vegetables, try finding creative ways to incorporate them into your diet. For example, you can blend fruits and vegetables into a smoothie, make veggie-based soups, or eat fruits as an alternative to unhealthy snacks. 

Limit Meat Consumption

Meat is a good source of protein, which is an essential macronutrient your body needs to function properly. However, consuming too much protein, especially from meat, can have adverse health effects and can even shorten your life span. This is mainly because proteins from red meat activate the mTOR (mammalian target of rapamycin) pathway. mTOR is an essential regulator for many cellular processes, such as cell growth, proliferation, and metabolism. While mTOR activation leads to many beneficial outcomes, such as muscle growth and development, over-activation can promote aging, the onset of type II diabetes, and even stimulate cancer cell growth. High consumption of red meat has, therefore, been linked to a significantly shorter life span. Furthermore, processed meats such as ham, bacon, salami, and sausages have even been classified as Group 1 carcinogenic by the World Health Organization, meaning that there's sufficient evidence that they cause cancer.

Our tip: If you love meat, try to eat it in moderation and opt for leaner cuts of white meat such as chicken breast or, even better, fatty fish like salmon. Legumes and tofu are also excellent sources of protein that have additional health benefits.

Limit Dairy Products

While dairy products are a good source of calcium and vitamin D, they're also high in unhealthy saturated fat and cholesterol. Research has found that milk consumption can lead to inflammation and activate pro-aging pathways like mTOR and IGF. In addition, researchers found that people drinking full-fat milk had significantly shorter telomeres compared to those that didn't. Telomere shortening is a major hallmark of aging and a critical indicator of an individual's biological age. In addition to the unhealthy fats in milk, galactose, a sugar found in dairy products, has been implicated in accelerating aging and is even given to model organisms in animal studies to mimic the aging process.

Our tip: While it's hard to say with certainty how significant a role milk plays in aging, we recommend ditching regular milk and opting for plant-based milk like almond, oat, or soy milk instead. 

 

Reduce Your Total Caloric Intake

Research on calorie restriction (CR) in various species, including rats, monkeys, and even humans, has continuously shown that decreasing food intake leads to increased longevity. Intermittent fasting and time-restricted eating are both forms of fasting in which you alternate between periods of fasting (18-36 hours) and eating (6-12 hours). They both mimic the effects of calorie restriction without inducing some of the side effects associated with CR, such as fatigue. When fasting, the cells in your body shift their metabolisms and enter a state of increased autophagy, in which they degrade and recycle old and damaged proteins and organelles. This process leads to improved protein homeostasis, another hallmark of aging, and therefore plays a crucial role in extending longevity. Moreover, undergoing multiple shorter periods of fasting has additional health benefits, such as weight loss management and improved insulin sensitivity, and can even decrease age-related cognitive decline.

Our tip: If you want to increase your life span, try reducing your total caloric intake. We recommend eliminating snacking, skipping a meal every once in a while (preferably dinner), and ideally setting a daily eating window of no more than 6-8 hours. If you are new to fasting, start slowly and gradually decrease the time window for your daily meals.

Take Longevity Nutraceuticals

Over the years, researchers have identified many compounds that extend the life span of numerous model organisms, such as yeast, flies, mice, and dogs. Several of these compounds have recently undergone human clinical trials, with many positive, beneficial outcomes reported, such as improvements in critical longevity biomarkers. While some of these studies used prescription medications like metformin and rapamycin, others used naturally occurring nutraceuticals such as NMN, aAKG, and fisetin. However, given the complexity of the aging process, it is likely that only a holistic solution targeting all 9-hallmarks of aging can effectively slow down the aging process in humans. 

 

Our Tip: Take a high-quality supplement that targets all hallmarks of aging from a trusted company that continuously monitors the scientific literature and updates its formulas accordingly.

 

Wrapping It Up

We hope you found these tips helpful. Remember, nutrition is just one piece of the longevity puzzle. Being physically active, keeping your mind sharp, and maintaining social connections are all essential factors for longevity. We'll cover all of these topics in future blog posts. Stay tuned!

 

To stay up-to-date with the latest developments in longevity research and receive more tips on ways to extend your lifespan, enter your email address below. We promise not to spam you!

 

Extensia is the first holistic longevity platform. We provide nutraceuticals and a digital health companion to extend our customers' health span and slow down the aging process. We monitor and evaluate the scientific landscape using our proprietary AI and our team of longevity researchers. We continuously update and improve our formulations and intervention protocols to ensure that our customers always receive the most effective products based on the best available evidence. 

References

Asadi Shahmirzadi, A., Edgar, D., Liao, C. Y., Hsu, Y. M., Lucanic, M., Asadi Shahmirzadi, A., Wiley, C. D., Gan, G., Kim, D. E., Kasler, H. G., Kuehnemann, C., Kaplowitz, B., Bhaumik, D., Riley, R. R., Kennedy, B. K., & Lithgow, G. J. (2020). Alpha-Ketoglutarate, an Endogenous Metabolite, Extends Lifespan and Compresses Morbidity in Aging Mice. Cell Metabolism, 32(3), 447-456.e6. https://doi.org/10.1016/J.CMET.2020.08.004

Bo-Htay, C., Palee, S., Apaijai, N., Chattipakorn, S. C., & Chattipakorn, N. (2018). Effects of d‐galactose‐induced ageing on the heart and its potential interventions. Journal of Cellular and Molecular Medicine, 22(3), 1392. https://doi.org/10.1111/JCMM.13472

Can Calorie Restriction Extend Your Lifespan? - Science in the News. (n.d.). Retrieved May 4, 2022, from https://sitn.hms.harvard.edu/flash/2020/can-calorie-restriction-extend-your-lifespan/

de Almeida Rezende, M. S., Oliveira de Almeida, A. J. P., Gonçalves, T. A. F., de Azevedo, F. de L. A. A., Dantas, S. H., Silva, S. de L., Soares, E. M. C., Alves, H. F., Lima, T. T., de Souza Júnior, J. F., Guerra, R. R., Araújo, I. G. A., & de Medeiros, I. A. (2021). D-(+)-Galactose-induced aging: A novel experimental model of erectile dysfunction. PLOS ONE, 16(4), e0249487. https://doi.org/10.1371/JOURNAL.PONE.0249487

Detzel, C. J., Fleming, M. Q., Warner, C. D., Henderson, A. L., & Weaver, E. M. (2015). Functional animal proteins activate mTOR and bind pro-inflammatory compounds. Journal of the International Society of Sports Nutrition, 12(Suppl 1), P35. https://doi.org/10.1186/1550-2783-12-S1-P35

Fadnes, L. T., Økland, J. M., Haaland, Ø. A., & Johansson, K. A. (2022). Estimating impact of food choices on life expectancy: A modeling study. PLOS Medicine, 19(2), e1003889. https://doi.org/10.1371/JOURNAL.PMED.1003889

Guillén, C., & Benito, M. (2018). MTORC1 overactivation as a key aging factor in the progression to type 2 diabetes mellitus. Frontiers in Endocrinology, 9(OCT), 621. https://doi.org/10.3389/FENDO.2018.00621/BIBTEX

Hu, D., Xie, F., Xiao, Y., Lu, C., Zhong, J., Huang, D., Chen, J., Wei, J., Jiang, Y., & Zhong, T. (2021). Metformin: A Potential Candidate for Targeting Aging Mechanisms. Aging and Disease, 12(2), 480. https://doi.org/10.14336/AD.2020.0702

Hwangbo, D. S., Lee, H. Y., Abozaid, L. S., & Min, K. J. (2020). Mechanisms of Lifespan Regulation by Calorie Restriction and Intermittent Fasting in Model Organisms. Nutrients, 12(4). https://doi.org/10.3390/NU12041194

Li, H., Zheng, L., Chen, C., Liu, X., & Zhang, W. (2019). Brain Senescence Caused by Elevated Levels of Reactive Metabolite Methylglyoxal on D-Galactose-Induced Aging Mice. Frontiers in Neuroscience, 13, 1004. https://doi.org/10.3389/FNINS.2019.01004/BIBTEX

Longo, V. D., di Tano, M., Mattson, M. P., & Guidi, N. (2021). Intermittent and periodic fasting, longevity and disease. Nature Aging 2021 1:1, 1(1), 47–59. https://doi.org/10.1038/s43587-020-00013-3

Melnik, B. C., John, S. M., Carrera-Bastos, P., & Cordain, L. (2012). The impact of cow’s milk-mediated mTORC1-signaling in the initiation and progression of prostate cancer. Nutrition & Metabolism, 9, 74. https://doi.org/10.1186/1743-7075-9-74

Papadopoli, D., Boulay, K., Kazak, L., Pollak, M., Mallette, F. A., Topisirovic, I., & Hulea, L. (2019). mTOR as a central regulator of lifespan and aging. F1000Research, 8. https://doi.org/10.12688/F1000RESEARCH.17196.1

Red meat, processed meat and cancer | Cancer Council NSW. (n.d.). Retrieved May 4, 2022, from https://www.cancercouncil.com.au/1in3cancers/lifestyle-choices-and-cancer/red-meat-processed-meat-and-cancer/

Rinninella, E., Cintoni, M., Raoul, P., Lopetuso, L. R., Scaldaferri, F., Pulcini, G., Miggiano, G. A. D., Gasbarrini, A., & Mele, M. C. (2019). Food Components and Dietary Habits: Keys for a Healthy Gut Microbiota Composition. Nutrients, 11(10). https://doi.org/10.3390/NU11102393

Shade, C. (2020). The Science Behind NMN–A Stable, Reliable NAD+Activator and Anti-Aging Molecule. Integrative Medicine: A Clinician’s Journal, 19(1), 12. /pmc/articles/PMC7238909/

Tucker, L. A. (2019). Milk Fat Intake and Telomere Length in U.S. Women and Men: The Role of the Milk Fat Fraction. Oxidative Medicine and Cellular Longevity, 2019. https://doi.org/10.1155/2019/1574021

Yang, Y., Zhao, L. G., Wu, Q. J., Ma, X., & Xiang, Y. B. (2015). Association between dietary fiber and lower risk of all-cause mortality: a meta-analysis of cohort studies. American Journal of Epidemiology, 181(2), 83–91. https://doi.org/10.1093/AJE/KWU257

Yoon, M. S. (2017). mTOR as a key regulator in maintaining skeletal muscle mass. Frontiers in Physiology, 8(OCT), 788. https://doi.org/10.3389/FPHYS.2017.00788/BIBTEX

Yousefzadeh, M. J., Zhu, Y., McGowan, S. J., Angelini, L., Fuhrmann-Stroissnigg, H., Xu, M., Ling, Y. Y., Melos, K. I., Pirtskhalava, T., Inman, C. L., McGuckian, C., Wade, E. A., Kato, J. I., Grassi, D., Wentworth, M., Burd, C. E., Arriaga, E. A., Ladiges, W. L., Tchkonia, T., … Niedernhofer, L. J. (2018). Fisetin is a senotherapeutic that extends health and lifespan. EBioMedicine, 36, 18–28. https://doi.org/10.1016/J.EBIOM.2018.09.015