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A new study suggests that humans, like animals, age more slowly when they consume a restricted calorie diet. A study has suggested that restricting calories slows ageing in humans. There's evidence that low calorie diets are life prolonging in animals but not so far in people. Those studied were on a diet of - wait for it - 1600 calories (6720 kilojoules) a day. They eliminated empty calories from confectionary, soft drinks and processed foods to make every calorie highly nutritional. In over seven years they've lost more than 20 kilos and dropped their blood pressure, insulin and blood fats to the levels of a young person. This study looked at how flexible the heart was - because it normally stiffens with age. The findings were that the calorie-restricted people had hearts that were 10 or 15 years younger than their true age. The theory is that fat cells induce inflammation in the body which then reacts by producing scar-like tissue - fibrosis - which stiffens organs like the heart. Calorie-restricted people have seven per cent body fat and very low levels of inflammation. But the question remains: does calorie restriction actually make you live longer or is life so boring it only seems longer?
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