L'Italo-Americano

THURSDAY, OCTOBER 28, 2021 www.italoamericano.org 26 L'Italo-Americano H o w m u c h d o e s e a t i n g w e l l m a t t e r t o l i v e a h e a l t h y l i f e and enjoy a healthy old age? It is not a simple question to answer because, as pointed out by Valter Longo - pro- fessor of bio-gerontology and director of the Institute on Longevity at USC (Uni- versity of Southern Califor- n i a ) - D a v i s S c h o o l o f Gerontology - we should s p e c i f y n o t o n l y w h a t w e eat, but also how much of this food should be eaten and when. The latest study conduct- ed by his center, one of the most important in the fields of aging and age-related dis- eases, found that five days a month of a low-calorie diet c a l l e d f a s t - m i m i c k i n g help the body to lower cho- lesterol levels, with conse- quent benefits for the heart and for health as a whole. "This does not mean that you can eat badly, and then well for a few days" Longo, who is also the director of the Longevity and Cancer R e s e a r c h P r o g r a m a t t h e Institute of Molecular Oncology in Milan, speci- f i e s . " H o w e v e r , w e m u s t consider that a high per - centage of the population will continue to maintain t h e s a m e l i f e s t y l e w i t h respect to food. Therefore, our study suggests, we could g i v e t o t h o s e w h o d o n ' t want to change their diet the possibility to compen- sate without relying heavily on cholesterol, blood pres- s u r e , a n d h e a r t m e d i c a - tions." Professor, what con- clusions can be drawn from your recently pub- lished study in Nature Metabolism? This study follows a pre- v i o u s o n e t h a t l a s t e d 5 - 6 years, on the use of a fasting d i e t i n v a r i o u s t y p e s o f p a t i e n t s , o b e s e o r o v e r - weight. This last study, on the other hand, was carried out on mice that were divid- ed into two groups: the first g r o u p w a s g i v e n a h i g h - calorie, high-fat diet, while the second was given a low- calorie diet. Over time the m i c e i n t h e f i r s t g r o u p b e c a m e o b e s e a n d d i e d much earlier, with high cho- l e s t e r o l l e v e l s a n d o t h e r characteristics typical of the W e s t e r n d i e t . H o w e v e r , when the group of mice had 5 f a s t - m i m i c k i n g d a y s a month, this change alone was enough to bring all lev- els back to normal. What are the charac- teristics of a low-calorie diet? I t i s a f i v e d a y s d i e t , where 1100 calories are con- sumed on the first day, then 800 on the second day and the following ones. A f e w e x a m p l e s o f low-calorie food? I don't suggest recipes. It is a mistake I made years a g o a n d l a t e r I r e c e i v e d dozens of reports from doc- tors who told me of people who, having improvised DIY d i e t s , p r e s e n t e d v a r i o u s health problems. This low-calorie diet is not a real fast but a fast-mimicking diet that triggers the same kinds o f r e s p o n s e s i n t h e b o d y . W h a t a r e t h e organs that benefit the most? The heart surely. Then, a very interesting aspect we recorded in mice that fol- l o w e d a h i g h - c a l o r i e d i e t was the rise in cholesterol levels. The fast-mimicking diet hasn't been created as a slimming regimen, but as a method to slow down aging, r e g e n e r a t e c e l l s a n d increase longevity. Who can follow this diet? Almost everyone, except minors, people with anorex- ia, and people over the age of 70, even if we carried out studies in both Genoa and P e r u g i a o n 8 5 - y e a r - o l d s w i t h A l z h e i m e r ' s d i s e a s e and we recorded benefits. SILVIA GIUDICI Valter Longo with some elderly friends. His research looks into understanding the link between a fast-mimicking diet, good health, and longevity. Photo courtesy of Gianni Pes LIFE PEOPLE PLACES HERITAGE Valter Longo, a fast-mimicking diet to live long and healthy Continued to page 28

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