How many times have you decided that you will stick to your diet plan and then found yourself munching on unhealthy snacks? Well, if you are someone who finds it hard to stick to a diet, you may want to sit back and read this post. A long-running trial in macaque monkeys, the findings of which were published in Nature Communications, has found that calorie restriction diet makes them live three years longer than normal. Three years is a considerable increase in lifespan for monkeys because it directly translates to about nine years in human beings.
Calorie Restriction Diet improves lifespan in Monkeys
The trials started in the late 1980s and some of the monkeys involved trials are still alive today. During the trial, one of the reports from a group based at University of Wisconsin concluded that monkeys on calorie-restricted diet had the longer lifespan. But the second study by NIA didn’t find any data that conclusively established the increased longevity. This cast doubts on the entire experiment. However, most recent findings back the earlier trial that points at calorie restriction diet actually increasing longevity in monkeys.
Can Calorie Restriction Diet help increase human lifespan?
Although many studies have shown that calorie restriction diet extends the lifespan of organisms, including yeast and worms, it’s unclear if the approach can really lengthen the lives of humans. Human beings, compared to other organisms, have a longer lifespan. Even if we human beings do stick to calorie restriction diet, the exact amount of lifespan increase hasn’t been established conclusively. However, it is known to have other benefits, including better control over blood cholesterol and glucose levels.
Brian Delaney, president of Calorie Restriction Society, who has been practicing calorie restriction for 24 years, says – “Is it worth it? My choice is to do it. But I’m so used to the diet that it really isn’t very difficult for me anymore.”