The search for a “cure for aging,” or the proverbial fountain of youth, is alive and kicking throughout the world. Still, the camps are divided over whether virtual immortality in humans is possible -- and if it is, if it’s a good thing.

According to Cambridge University geneticist Aubrey de Grey:


“The first person to live to be 1,000 years old is certainly alive today …whether they realize it or not, barring accidents and suicide, most people now 40 years or younger can expect to live for centuries.”


Among the many advances in science and technology that point to an incredibly long life for humans, possibly in the near future, are experiments that have extended the lifespan of fruit flies and other organisms, including mammals.

Anti-aging researchers are increasingly optimistic that aging can be slowed down dramatically, or even prevented altogether.

Even the federal government has devoted funds, to the tune of $2.4 billion a year, to study the “biology of aging.”

“ … In the near future, say the next two to four decades, the disease of aging will be cured,” said Robert Freitas at the Institute for Molecular Manufacturing, a non-profit, nanotech group in Palo Alto, California.

Would Immortality be a Wise Decision?

To some, the question of immortality isn’t one of, “Can it be done?” but rather, “Should it be done?” Opponents of the anti-aging movement point to potential problems with overpopulation, limited resources, global warming and more, if humans begin to live “unnaturally” long lives.

Moreover, some say that living indefinitely would undermine the very definition of being “human,” and raises some serious ethical, moral, and ecological questions.

“There is no known social good coming from the conquest of death,” said bioethicist Daniel Callahan of the Hastings Center in Garrison, New York.


Metabolic aspects of the extreme longevity

M. Barbieria, A. Gambardellaa, G. Paolisso, a, and M. Varricchioa
aDepartment of Geriatric Medicine and Metabolic Diseases, Second University of Naples, Piazza Miraglia 2, I-80138 Napoli, Italy
Received 14 September 2006; revised 17 October 2006; accepted 26 June 2007. Available online 30 June 2007.





Abstract

Starting from young to very old subjects, aging is associated with a progressive remodeling. Such an age-dependent remodeling process mainly affects anthropometrics, endocrine and thus, also metabolic factors. Interestingly, it occurs in some individuals successfully, while in others unsuccessfully. Centenarians in good health conditions are a very selected group of subjects representing an exceptional condition. Why the centenarians reach the extreme human life span is still unknown. Thus, in this article we will review the best known causes of age-related insulin resistance, outline the main metabolic differences between aged subjects and healthy centenarians, underline the clinical relevance of insulin resistance in the elderly and finally, we will try to propose a unifying hypothesis for explaining the development of insulin resistance with aging.

Keywords: Aging; Human longevity; Insulin resistance; Anthropometric changes



Corresponding author. Tel.: +39 081 566 5135; fax: +39 081 5665303.


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This is a particularly good topic for me now as this week I am the keynote speaker at a Bioenergetic Medicine conference that is focusing on anti-aging. I have reviewed the literature and found the study in a recent Gerontology journal that I linked above. I personally believe that the current human genetic system is designed to allow us to live to be about 120 years old. I have never seen any credible evidence of anyone living to be older than this.

But does that mean that human lifespan will always be as we now know it?

I don't believe so.

I think there are incredible, radical innovations going on in technology today that will literally (highly likely in the next 20 years or so, and maybe sooner) enable us to effectively extend our lifespan by another 50 years.

Living to be 1,000 years old, as this article suggests, is an entirely different animal than adding on several decades to your life. Is it possible? Perhaps. Though I’d be surprised if it happens as soon as some of those researchers are speculating. It would also call for an extreme shift in the way we view our planet and resources, and may trigger an urgency to exploring space as a viable place to live.

How to Live to be 100

I would suspect that many of you would be happy to live to be 100 -- or 120 -- even if the idea of living to 1,000 seems unnatural. And I do believe that this is an entirely reasonable goal for most everyone.

The major key to avoiding premature aging is to keep your insulin levels down by avoiding grains and sugars in your diet. That's because any meal or snack high in the carbohydrates (found in grains and sugars) generates a rapid rise in your blood glucose. To adjust for this rise, your pancreas secretes the hormone insulin into your bloodstream, which lowers the glucose. There is just no question in my mind, nor should there be in yours, that normalizing insulin and leptin levels is crucial if you expect to reach your maximum lifespan.

There appears to be an age related insulin resistance that is due to an insulin receptor or post receptor defect that is clearly related to exercise and diet choices.

Unfortunately, your body is not designed to accommodate unnaturally high levels of insulin and leptin spiked by grains and sugars.

Not only does this excess insulin store calories from the carbs in the form of fat (which is why so many are overweight and obese these days), but the excess insulin also suppresses essential hormones and your immune system -- all of which are absolutely essential for avoiding premature aging.

Quite simply, consuming sugar and grains is the equivalent of slamming your foot down on the aging accelerator!

You may have also heard of studies that show lowering your caloric intake can slow aging and extend lifespan. I suspect the majority of the benefits from calorie restriction are related to its influence on insulin, as reducing calories also reduces insulin. There is bulk of new evidence that supports this. So you don't have to torture yourself to live longer. Most people would never do it anyway as they would wisely realize this was a foolish endeavor, but there are quite a few extremists who have chosen to eat far less to live longer.

They have made a foolish choice because it is not lowering your calories that causes you to live longer, it is optimizing your insulin and leptin levels. Calorie restriction will do this, but it does it at an enormous price, both psychologically and physiologically. Removing the joy from eating is a major issue and when you don't eat enough you will miss certain key micronutriients.

It's Never Too Late

Remember that your body was designed to stay healthy -- and it’s never too late to start taking control of your health!

It saddens me to see people in their 50s, 60s, and beyond who think they are “too old” to make changes for the better.

This is completely false!

If you're ...

Eating the right foods,especially eating right for your nutritional type
Taking care of the emotional traumas that we all invariably go through
Removing yourself from toxic influences
Exercising... your body will go toward health. HOWEVER, please recognize that eating right for your nutritional type is probably more important than exercising to decrease your aging rate. Also please be sure to review the other article in this issue that reviews the dangers of OVER exercising, which will lower your lifespan.
What About Resveratrol and Red Wine?

Resveratrol, a chemical found in red wine, has made headlines for slowing down the aging process in mice.

It is one of the most exciting antioxidants out there, in my opinion.

It appears that resveratrol does have the power to extend life, just as the less-desirable method of calorie restriction does.

However, I don’t buy into the hype that drinking red wine is the best way to obtain it, as the alcohol in the wine is a neurotoxin that is definitely not good for your health. If you want to boost your consumption of resveratrol, focus on products that contain WHOLE grape skins and seeds, and skip the red wine entirely.