Scientists have made progress on life extension

The head of the Buck Institute for Research on Aging, located in California and, by the way, the only one of its kind in the world, Dr. Brian Kennedy, stated that changes have already occurred in modern medicine that will help to extend people's lives by decades.

At a meeting in St. Petersburg dedicated to new technologies in the field of longevity, Professor Kennedy noted that scientists at his institute were able to find out what actually provokes the aging of the body - constant stress and excess calories. Scientists have been talking about the harm of stress for a long time, but not everyone knows that extra pounds contribute to aging, and whether this discovery indicates that losing weight can rejuvenate the body.

Kennedy's research group has been studying the causes of cell aging for 20 years and regarding extra pounds, scientists can say the following: when consuming a large amount of high-calorie food, the risk of inflammation in fat deposits increases (men have a higher probability of inflammatory processes than women). In experiments with rodents, it was found that excess weight clearly accelerates the aging process and shortens the lifespan of animals, but in humans things are not quite so, for example, in women, hormones called estrogens help prevent inflammation (even if there are extra pounds), but after menopause, women and men are in an equal position and the risk of inflammation in women increases several times.

In addition, today scientists have recognized that chronic inflammatory processes contribute to premature aging.

Dr. Kennedy's colleagues, a group led by Valter Longo from the University of Southern California, observed people's diets and mortality risk. As a result, it was found that the presence of large amounts of animal proteins and dairy products in the menu significantly reduces life expectancy, but such a diet is only suitable for people under 65 years of age; in old age, people who consumed more protein (about 20%) had better health.

Based on this, scientists concluded that before talking about healthy eating or normal weight, one should pay attention to a person's age. Scientists are sure that the older a person is, the less dangerous excess weight is for him; on the contrary, for people over 44, extra pounds serve as a kind of additional protection.

Dr. Kennedy noted that during meals, the mTOR protein is activated in the body, which is involved in cell division and growth, and is necessary for a young growing organism, but in adulthood, when the body begins to "wear out", it is important to cleanse the cells (accumulated damage can cause cancer, diabetes and other serious diseases). Scientists have found that a lack of nutrients triggers a "stress resistance mode" in the body, which stops the aging process and cell destruction.

Animal experiments have shown that reducing the activity of the mTOR protein helps extend life by up to 25% (on average, by 10-25 years for humans).

Rapamycin (a common immunosuppressant used in organ transplants), metformin, and acarbose (drugs used to treat diabetes) help inhibit the activity of the mTOR protein.

Scientists are currently working to develop anti-aging drugs based on the above-mentioned drugs. In addition, trials of the geroprotector metformin have already begun, which is not as effective in prolonging life as ascarbose or rapamycin, but is safer for humans compared to other drugs. Until the final results of clinical trials are received, taking such drugs on your own is dangerous to health and life. But for those who want to maintain health and prolong life, Professor Kennedy recommends sticking to a low-calorie diet or a recently popular diet called 5/2, in which you can eat almost everything 5 times a week (do not abuse unhealthy foods - smoked products, hamburgers, etc.), and 2 days eat low-calorie foods.

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