A diet that mimics fasting can reverse signs of aging and reduce disease risk: study

health

by Adriana Diaz

Do you want to turn back the hands of time? This diet may help.

A study published Tuesday in the journal Nature Communications found that a fasting-mimetic diet (FMD) can reduce a person's biological age by an average of two and a half years.

5-day FMD is rich in unsaturated fat and low in calories, protein, and carbohydrates. It is designed to mimic the effects of a water-only fast while providing necessary nutrients.

“This is the first study to show that a food-based intervention that does not require chronic diet or other lifestyle changes can rejuvenate people biologically,” lead author and University of Southern California Professor Valter Longo said in a statement.

“This is based on both aging and changes in disease risk factors and validated methods developed to assess biological age,” Longo added.

USC researchers analyzed the effects of foot-and-mouth disease in two clinical trials involving men and women between the ages of 18 and 70.

Participants received three to four cycles of FMD per month, followed by five days on the diet before returning to a “normal” or Mediterranean-style diet for 25 days.

Although participants were limited to foot-and-mouth disease, they filled their plates with plant-based soups, energy bars, chips, energy drinks, and tea. They were also given supplements containing high levels of minerals, vitamins, and essential fatty acids.

The study found that FMD lowers diabetes risk factors (such as lower insulin resistance and lower HbA1c levels), reduces liver fat, slows the aging of the immune system, and lowers the risk of age-related diseases. It has been found that this results in a decrease in biological age.

“Biological age” is a measure of a person's cell and tissue function, not their chronological age.

“Our research also highlights the potential of foot-and-mouth disease as a short-term, regular, achievable dietary intervention to help people reduce their risk of disease and improve their health without significantly changing their lifestyle.” This provides further support for the study's first author, Sebastian Brandhorst.

Previous research conducted by Longo has shown that short, regular FMD cycles can promote stem cell regeneration and reduce the side effects of chemotherapy. Other trials have found that FMD may reduce symptoms of dementia.

The study comes as more people are adopting exercise routines and even electric shocks in an attempt to reverse aging.