How To Embrace Longevity Nutrition, Based On A Comprehensive Study

Sometimes a truly awesome compilation of scientific evidence in the field of nutrition is systematically examined by researchers, and as a nutrition scientist and dietitian, it makes me want to shake the author's hands and personally thank them. This recent review publication1 from the highly competitive journal Cell is one of those instances. To study authors Valter Longo, Ph.D., and Rozalyn Anderson, Ph.D., I'm metaphorically tipping my nutrition hat to you.

From complex cellular pathways and preclinical models (from yeast and worms to rodents), all the way up to randomized controlled trials in humans and population research—this formative Cell publication1 investigated what dietary patterns and related choices affect biological years of life, aka longevity. 

As the science clearly demonstrates, healthful nutrition is the ultimate power play. It enables us to harness cellular pathways of rejuvenation and even regeneration for healthy aging. Now that's powerful. 

From simple organisms to humans, cellular pathways are where it's at for leveraging nutrition from the inside out. Based on the collective research, it appears that a few key cellular processes are clearly pro-longevity and are therefore heavily conserved across species. 

Some of these undeniably important features for longevity include efficient energy metabolism in the mitochondria (energy powerhouse of our cells), cellular housekeeping (autophagy) activities, resilience to stress, times of fasting, and the utilization of fats for fuel. 

For energy metabolism, along with a healthy balance of macros (carb, protein, fat), essential B vitamins and CoQ10 required for cellular ATP energy production also immediately come to mind.*

The utility of a fat-centric lifestyle or a fat-heavy dietary pattern like keto (if that's your thing), or simply incorporating healthy fats regardless of your dietary pattern, makes a ton of nutrition sense when those fats are mostly sourced from plants and fish.

Animal fats, sugar (and refined carbs generally), and animal protein are tied to pathways that promote excess adiposity, reduce insulin sensitivity, trigger oxidative stress and inflammatory cascades, and elevate metabolic dysregulation. 

While the goal is always to consume a normocaloric pattern of nutrition (i.e., for your calories taken in to match your personalized metabolic needs), there are some things to keep in mind. For instance, when caloric intake regularly exceeds needs, this can result in energy balance2 being off-kilter.

When it comes to striking energy balance, I don't have to tell you that our current food environment is working against us. In the last few decades, we've experienced a major one-two punch: Portion sizes3 have drastically increased, while the nutritional quality of our food has plummeted.

What's more, we know from rodents and primates, to Homo sapiens ourselves—conserving calories not only helps one achieve and maintain a healthy weight but, more importantly, results in positive changes in body composition, namely less excess adiposity (fat mass) and more lean muscle tissue (fat-free mass). 

On the flip side, excess calories, fat storage, insulin resistance, and shorter life span are intertwined. Not a fun web to be tangled in. For example, we know that elevated insulin levels are clearly tied to accelerated aging, a relationship that's conserved across many species.

Consuming fewer calories from food is directly related to cardiometabolic health gains in the realm of insulin sensitivity, heart physiology, and even liver health. What's more, clinical studies indicate that being thrifty with calories leads to biomarker improvements that indicate the "pace of aging is delayed."

If you were to take a class on longevity enhancement 101, fasting4 would be discussed in the first lecture. That's because from the research to date, it's very clear that longevity is tied to "a switch to metabolic patterns associated with fasting responses."

While fasting comes in many varieties, the most common form is intermittent fasting, involving 12-plus hours of fasting per day. Now, I recognize that fasting may not be the best fit for everyone, and for anyone with a history of disordered eating, you'll want to partner closely with your health care practitioner.

However, for most individuals, I encourage looking at the term "fasting" in a new light. I think it's useful to think of intermittent fasting as a dedicated window—a way to "corral" nutrition consumption into a defined period of time (e.g., 12 hours) in your day. 

So after digging into the full-spectrum of research literature (from cells to humans) on nutrition factors and cellular pathways that affect longevity, the common denominators can finally be unveiled. The thesis is dominated by plants and leveraging the power of a break from food (fasting) each day.

Thanks to the scientific research to date, we know the "code," if you will, for health-span-promoting nutrition. It's all about nourishing ourselves from the inside out with high-quality fuel for our cells. Think plant-centric whole foods, omega-3-laden fish, limiting sugars, and focusing your food intake into a 12-hour daily window.