Supposedly, this is a combination of foods researched in the U.K. that would on average boost the average life span by at least five years. Is this different from any other diet high in vegetables and fruit, while being relatively low fat (such as Ornish, Pritikin, and DASH) which claim great health benefits?
Also, I seem to remember reading something at www.sciencedaily.com a couple of years ago about something being researched in the U.K. tentatively called the “Polypill”. It consisted of four or five common cardiac drugs combined into one pill (Aspirin, and ACE inhibitors were two I think). Supposedly this would drastically reduce CHD deaths according to what little research exists. Are the Polypill and Polydiet related? Also, I seem to remember reading about a “super antioxidant” being researched in the UK (resveritol maybe?) that extended the life of labratory animals significantly. What’s up with the UK and longevity research? Why are they making headlines with potential breakthroughs while we are recalling drugs linked to increased mortality (Vioxx, and Celebrex)?
Are the Polypill and the Polymeal related? No, not really. The scientists named it that to get attention.
Basically, they just took the foods that have been tentatively shown to extend life and combined them into a meal. Here’s a good New Scientist article about it.
Do you really want the secret to good health and longevity? It’s not that complicated—just follow these simple guidelines:
1.) Eat a sensible diet composed of about 80% complex carbohydrates, 10% protein, and 10% fat, such as the Pritikin or DASH diet. Try to shy away from the monosaccharide fructose, though.
2.) Take a small amount of supplementary antioxidants, small being the operative term here. Large amounts of antioxidants will confer no additional benefit, and are most likely harmful. The best commercial antioxidant mix currently available is probably LEF Mix from the Life Extension Foundation. I take one third the recommended dosage, or three tablets/day. More is probably superfluous.
3.) In addition to a general antioxidant mix, take aspirin and the synthetic compound aminoguanidine.
4.) Get plenty of sleep and regular exercise.
5.) Lead a productive life, value your family above everything else, and try as hard as you can to keep her happy in bed. It will do wonders for both of you.
This is about as state-of-the-art as it gets. Not really rocket science, is it?
Well, no, it’s not. There’s a lot more known about how to live longer, and it’s looking more and more like calorie restriction is the single biggest thing.
Pretty much everything else is theoretical and/or open to conjecture. Caloric restriction is not only the single biggest thing, it is the only thing that will unquestionably extend life span. I covered that in step 1. And technically, even that is theoretical. But as Roy Walford put it, “for caloric restriction not to extend the human life span, we would have to discard almost everything we know about the aging process”.
