My starting point for this article is this: there are no correct models, but some models are useful. In other words, nothing is hard and fast in science. Our understanding evolves all the time, and with it the world around us evolves as well. And I’m not necessarily saying that evolving our understanding means we understand more. Sometimes we just get to a point where we realize we don’t understand anything. And those can be pivotal points, as they make us go back to basics and start over.

So getting older, prolonging life, and improving health (and appearance!) in old age… It seems science has gone back to basics on this one. And there’s a simple principle that comes up time and time again with every longevity study: eat less.

Now, there are two main ways to eat less. Suppose you decide to reduce your caloric intake to X calories per day. (Note: I don’t know how much X should be for you – that will depend on body weight, physical exertion, etc.) One way to eat those X calories a day would be to spread them out throughout the day in frequent but portioned meals. Conversely, you can eat the same number of calories over an 8-hour period (meaning fewer, larger meals) and fast for 16 hours. The latest strategy is called intermittent fasting, and the scientific literature right now says that’s the way to go if you want to live longer, look better, and feel healthier.

Thus, researchers from the University of Alabama conducted a study with a small group of obese men with prediabetes. They compared a form of intermittent fasting called “time-restricted early feeding,” in which all meals were either set to an early eight-hour window of the day (7 a.m. to 3 p.m.) or spread over 12 hours (between 7 a.m. and 3 p.m.). and 3 p.m.). 19:00). After five weeks, the eight-hour group had dramatically lower insulin levels and significantly improved insulin sensitivity, as well as significantly lower blood pressure. And the best part: The eight-hour group also had a significant decrease in appetite.

Another study compared the effect of consuming one evening meal per day for 8 weeks and reported a 4.1% weight loss compared to an isocaloric diet eaten at three meals per day. One meal a day was also associated with reductions in fasting glucose and improvements in LDL and HDL cholesterol.

I can continue citing other studies. Many of them are in rats, where intermittent fasting conclusively extends life and health by at least 10 percent (which, in the rat world, means many years, by the way). But I want to take this discussion back to basics, which was my initial premise. Remember that in all religions some form of fasting is an important practice. Do you think that’s for religious purposes per se? And do you think it’s a coincidence that all religions recommend incorporating some fasting regiment? I guess not. I guess people have always intuitively known what’s best for them. And this intuitive knowledge is reflected in religious texts that act as manuals for healthy living. In fact, if you follow spiritual teachings (for example, love unconditionally, forgive, be compassionate, let go and surrender, don’t overeat, etc.), you could live longer and be healthier (of course, as long as you get rid of institutional “religious” garbage). that was imposed in excess to serve the purposes of the ego of the upper classes). Now science comes out and says the same thing that religions have preached for centuries: intermittent fasting seems to trigger repair processes in the body that, in turn, increase health, improve appearance and prolong life. Isn’t that interesting?