The greatest longevity expert’s advice on how to live to 100 “12-hour fasting and a diet based on plants and fish”

live longer and better This is perhaps one of the most ambitious goals that we humans have set for ourselves in the last century. And there are some people, like Walter Longo, who have answers to these great unknowns. Longo, director of the Longevity Institute at the University of Southern California, is known for his research intermittent fasting And this has implications for health and aging.

For those who believe intermittent fasting requires great sacrifice, Walter Longo also offers hope.: Like a good Italian, His fight for longevity associates it with foods that include pasta and bread, despite the fact that these types of foods are part of the “five toxic ‘P’s”. Because as Socrates and Aristotle explained, it is not just about extending life, but about living it to the fullest; And how one should live to attain a good old age.

In fact, it Italian biologist and professorAvoids flour and raises the flag of fasting as a possible roadmap to living a longer and better life, but does not give up some fads in his diet, including foods that, despite not being on the list of the most recommended, They are also included to enjoy its taste.

You may be interested: This is the maximum amount of eggs you can eat per day

“I eat pasta and bread every day, but my body mass index it is 23″Signal of infobae Regarding your healthy BMI (between 18.5 and 24.9)As recommended by the US CDC.

The Italian-born professor is one of the best men of the moment today, one of the doctors most consulted by people who wish to live to 100 years or more. This led Time Magazine to include him in the World’s 50 Best Health References and call him a “‘Propagators of Longevity’.

After a decade of research, initially in rats and then followed by clinical trials in humans, his program was found to reduce the incidence of diabetes, cancer, and heart disease. Your daily dietary recommendation promotes a Low consumption of proteins and sugars, giving preference to healthy fats and vegetable products.

His method is based on Low intake of carbohydrates and proteins with emphasis on fatty acids. Their website states that their special diet simulates fasting, keeping the body in a state similar to food time restriction. This activates a set of defensive reactionsThe result of evolution is, thus, to optimize the functioning of the organism, promoting cellular regeneration and favoring adaptation to adverse conditions.

Longo believes that the Biblical reference in Time magazine is a bit much for him. “It occurred to him that I like to think of myself as a evangelist for living a long and healthy life.”This man who identifies himself as a food scholar expresses the same thing as the professor david sinclairAn expert geneticist and aging expert Harvard Medical Schoolwho is a zealous protector plant based diet As another gateway to longevity.

As if he were a superhero, Longo trades his days as a scientist for his lab coat, an image that changes when he comes home and picks up the electric guitar in his spare time, a passion he’s had ever since. Played in rock bands when he was a kid.

People also walk shoulder to shoulder with the stars. A few years ago he participated in an episode of the documentary series Goop with the actress Gwyneth Paltrow. “We talked to her about my proposed diet and aging,” People tell.

Italian researchers defend the extension of healthy living. He has researched the genes responsible for aging and written bestsellers such as Longevity diet.

He recently published a study based on clinical trials with elderly participants, including some from his hometown Calabriawhich shows Their fasting protocols can reduce biological age and prevent diseases associated with aging.

Investigation A diet that mimics fasting causes changes in liver and blood markers, indicating biological rejuvenation and reduced disease susceptibility.emphasizes that metabolic syndrome It affects approximately 37% of the United States population and 49% of individuals over the age of 60, increasing the risk of cardiovascular diseases and mortality.

Furthermore, it highlights that not only the amount of calories ingested and the composition of macronutrients are determinant for health and longevity, but also the period over which daily intake is carried out.

Longo and his team of researchers determined that limiting the duration of daily food consumption, known as time-restricted eating, is linked to health benefits and longer life. Similarly, they explain, intermittent fasting provides protection against various diseases and longer life expectancy.

Today Italy is home to one of the world’s oldest population enclaves, called blue area, which are? This is Loma Linda in California; Nicoya Peninsula in Costa Rica; Vilcabamba in Ecuador; in Sardinia, Italy, Caucasia, in Georgia (in the former Soviet Union); Hunza in Pakistan and Okinawa Peninsula in Japan.

The truth is that the word longevity has never been discussed as much as it is now, an issue that has been reinforced by some of the awakenings caused by the pandemic. “We now know that we can be healthy and happy during that longer period of life.”Longo postulates.

And he cites an anecdote: “I once asked my Catholic mother, who was very religious, if she would live to be 300. Surprisingly, he said yes, he said, ‘So that I can see you, your children, and your children’s children grow up.'”

—you recommend in your book The “Longevity Diet” eliminates the “5 toxic Ps” (pizza, pasta, animal proteins (especially rich in fat), potatoes and bread). How problematic can it be to constantly eat these types of foods? ,

-I’m not saying you have to eliminate them, you just have to eat them in moderation to maintain ideal body weight. I eat pasta and bread every day. However, most people make too many of what I call the 5 Ps. People should eat these, but maintain normal weight and percentage of fat mass.

—And what are the benefits of controlling them?

-If a longevity diet focused on aging is followed, all age-dependent diseases go away Diabetes, cancer and related heart diseases.

Longo is 56 years old but people close to him believe that he looks young. Born in Genoa in north-western Italy, as a boy he spent his summers in Molochio, Calabria, a town famous for its large number of centenarians.

At the age of 16, he moved to Chicago to live with his uncles, who followed a so-called “Chicago diet” based on sausage and sugary drinks.

There, during his stay, Longo became interested in playing guitar in various blues clubs. He had a rock group called DOT. I was a doctoral student at the time and was already showing a fascination with nutrition.

That is why he campaigned against the contemporary Italian diet rich in sausages, lasagna and fried vegetables, which he considered harmful and a source of various diseases.

Walter has two distinctly Italian fascinations: food and the aging process. He says that he wants to live till 120 years and beans, fish and fasting are his favorite options.

—There are people who say that adopting this type of healthy diet can return memory to youthful states. Is it really possible to rejuvenate a 20-year-old brain, as Dr. Sinclair recently suggested?

—I don’t know at 20, but it probably works like a young or very young brain.

-Metformin, a drug touted as an aide in longevity, is currently making waves in the United States. What is your opinion about this medicine?

—You need to stay away from drugs and use the Longevity Diet, a diet that simulates fasting, healthy eating, and exercise. These are the best.

—What type of exercise do you recommend and for how long per week?

—150 minutes a week, 15 minutes more vigorous. Also walking for 1 hour every day. Choose something you enjoy and that you can do year-round, like biking, skiing, or running.

—What other tips do you have for living beyond 100?

– Fast for 12 hours. Maintain a relatively high-calorie diet Vegetarianism and fish.

—I would like to know more about your personal preferences regarding food. Do you fast and for how many hours?

—I fast 12 hours every night and do 1 or 2 FMDs (Fasting Mimicking Diets) per year. It is a plan that simulates fasting, they are a 5-day diet with low protein content, low sugar, low calories and high fat derived from plants that can cause metabolic and cellular reprogramming, as well as reduction of stress factors. Can also reduce the risk of aging and diseases. I believe FMD is now available in South America. I also don’t eat lunch from Monday to Friday.

-In relation to your current research, what aspect of longevity studies interests you most at the moment and what do you want to explore in the future?

-Effect of FMD diet on reversing diabetes and improving cancer therapy. We hope that we will be able to use them against many diseases and aging.

—How long do you think people will live in the future? 100? 120 years? Will this be possible? Because

—It will be possible to reach 100 and above, but only for those who make every effort necessary to get there. Others will live to be 80 and spend the last 30 or 40 years on a lot of medications.

—Are there any bands you recommend listening to throughout your life as a guitarist?

-As a rock musician, I have to tell you that that band is Led Zeppelin.