
Reduced-﻿calorie diet shows signs of slowing ageing in people - onuralp
https://www.nature.com/articles/d41586-018-03431-x
======
drewblaisdell
So far in 2018 I have had one ~1300-1500 calorie meal per day for all except
maybe ten days (where I have gone out for drinks or have extra food late in
the evening with friends).

The strangest thing so far is how much my body has adapted to this - I skip
breakfast and lunch every day, yet don't feel particularly restricted (save
socially), hungry, or weak.

I am just one person, but I now intuitively feel that whatever passes for a
"reduced-calorie diet" these days is what used to pass for normal. It feels
normal, at least.

~~~
symbolepro
In India, there are monks who live without any food (and water as well) for
more than a month or so. Initially, I did not believe but then I confirmed
from many people and it was true. They basically do meditation during that
period and gain their energy from nature.

~~~
symbolepro
Some proof for down voters:

1) [https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/mumbai/Jain-monk-
co...](https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/mumbai/Jain-monk-
completes-423-days-of-fasting/articleshow/49616061.cms)

2)
[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Prahlad_Jani](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Prahlad_Jani)

~~~
symbolepro
Watch this documentary and see what people say. Hey HN folks, Sometimes
science does not explain everything.

[http://www.lightdocumentary.com/](http://www.lightdocumentary.com/) Trailer:
[https://youtu.be/Ul82-jaDmlY](https://youtu.be/Ul82-jaDmlY)

~~~
adrianN
These people still exhale CO2 and water vapor. Unless you believe that matter
spontaneously appears inside their bodies they have to lose weight.

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nck4222
No one's going to mention that the title is wrong? The experiment showed that
a calorie reduced diet slows metabolism in humans. The researcher specifically
says that a long term study that follows participants until their death would
be required to see if they live longer.

~~~
vanderZwan
> to see if they live longer.

This is quite subtle, but whether or not people live longer is not the same as
speed of ageing. Still, it could be argued that this subtlety makes the title
misleading, which is also "wrong" in a way.

If metabolism is tied to speed of ageing (don't know if that is established or
not) then the title would be technically correct.

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laichzeit0
That’s great and all, but you cannot build muscle unless you’re on a caloric
surplus. Good bye resistance weight training with the goal of having more
muscle.

The irony is that having more muscle would also increase the amount of
calories you need to maintain (not get bigger/fatter, not get smaller).

What I’m trying to say is that a “deficit” completely depends on what your
current lean body mass is. If I want to go on a 15% calorie deficit, I have to
eat 2200 calories a day. A much smaller person would probably GAIN weight at
that caloric intake.

~~~
drewblaisdell
IANA scientist, but the article claims new evidence that a reduced calorie
diet can slow metabolism, which would impact the “surplus” side of that
equation.

~~~
romanovcode
But if you don't fulfil the daily macro requirements then from what exactly
does the muscle builds?

~~~
vanderZwan
We were talking about caloric surplus, not macro nutrients.

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scythe
IIRC the big problem with calorie restriction is that it brings along a
greater susceptibility to infectious disease. After all if it were a cost-free
win, a gradient-descending (is that the right term?) optimization process like
evolution would have implemented it already.

[https://www.theguardian.com/science/blog/2009/jul/14/ageing-...](https://www.theguardian.com/science/blog/2009/jul/14/ageing-
calorie-restriction-diet)

Regarding suggestions made in another comment that calorie restriction
represents the preindustrial norm, I don't think this is something modern
nutritional science would have missed, considering the amount of research
performed into the diets of extant nomadic and otherwise primitive cultures.

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JoshMnem
I've been experimenting with it for two years, along with a high-nutrient diet
based on vegetables (almost no refined foods). I just did about two weeks at
1,000 calories per day and am on day 3 of a water fast. I'll increase the
caloric intake next week.

I hope it's safe. Some else posted this link in a comment, and it's worth
reading too:

[https://www.theguardian.com/science/blog/2009/jul/14/ageing-...](https://www.theguardian.com/science/blog/2009/jul/14/ageing-
calorie-restriction-diet)

~~~
naasking
Fasting is largely safe, but you have to monitor your weight loss. If you lose
weight too quickly, you're losing a lot of muscle mass and this can adversely
affect your heart.

[http://www.nytimes.com/2004/10/10/magazine/chest-pain-
recent...](http://www.nytimes.com/2004/10/10/magazine/chest-pain-recent-
weight-loss-abnormal-electrolytes.html)

Keep up some cardio and exercise to keep heart's muscle mass and dial down
calories slowly.

~~~
vanderZwan
Thanks for the heads-up. I lost ten kilos of weight last year without trying
due a mix of medication reducing my hunger and a sudden development of lactose
intolerance (so "accidental fasting" I guess), and didn't particularly do any
exercise. I was aware that I might lose muscle mass but hadn't considered the
effects it might have on my heart.

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EZ-E
Personal anecdote : I always ate little and spend most of my life underweight.
I look extremely young for my age. I estimate I rarely eat more than 1500 kcal
a day

When I think about it, most visibly underweight people I know tend to look
young. Does anyone have the same observation?

~~~
drukenemo
Humm not really. In my perception, as you age and lose collagen, it seems to
be that thinner people tend to show more wrinkled skin on their faces.

A good example to me is Anthony Bourdain. Here's a picture of him in 2014 and
four years later:

[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anthony_Bourdain#/media/File:A...](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anthony_Bourdain#/media/File:Anthony_Bourdain_2014_\(cropped\).jpg)

[http://www.bravotv.com/blogs/anthony-bourdain-comic-book-
hun...](http://www.bravotv.com/blogs/anthony-bourdain-comic-book-hungry-
ghosts)

Don't believe four years alone does that to someone's face skin.

~~~
bluedino
He doesn't look terrible for being over 60. Don't forget that the restaurant
industry is a stressful job with long hours, and he's known for his incessant
smoking, drinking, and drug use. Neither of those things lead to a youthful
appearance.

~~~
drukenemo
Not saying he looks terrible for his age. Just the fact that his face looks
way more wrinkled and the biggest factor seems to be weight loss, as not so
many years have passed from one photo to another. Also, he doesn't work in the
restaurant industry for a long time and enjoys what seems to be a very
comfortable life doing nice TV shows.

[https://www.instagram.com/anthonybourdain](https://www.instagram.com/anthonybourdain)

~~~
grvdrm
I'm guessing it's less comfortable than you're led to believe from the TV
show.

------
indogooner
This is difficult to follow in daily life although not impossible. Given that
food is becoming less nutritious as per [1] taking less food will mean less
nutrition which can affect general well-being. Figuring out foods high in
nutrients, low in calories will require a lot of discipline.

[1]
[https://www.nature.com/articles/nature13179](https://www.nature.com/articles/nature13179)

~~~
factsaresacred
> Figuring out foods high in nutrients, low in calories will require a lot of
> discipline.

Will it, really?

1\. Skip the snack aisle

2\. Visit the fruit and veg aisle

3\. Eat meat and replace candy with low-sugar nutrition bars

~~~
indogooner
You are pointing out foods low in calories(which is good) but as per the link
I quoted they may not be that nutritious.

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kornakiewicz
I cannot find it right now, but I am quite sure that in last few weeks there
was a post on HN with roughly the same statement, but for high protein diet.

~~~
MagnumOpus
No, the evidence for high protein is the opposite - shortening life by
increasing cancer risk:

"study cohort aged 50–65 reporting high protein intake had a 75% increase in
overall mortality and a 4-fold increase in cancer death risk during the
following 18 years"

Levine ME, Suarez JA, Brandhorst S, et al.: "Low protein intake is associated
with a major reduction in IGF-1, cancer, and overall mortality in the 65 and
younger but not older population" Cell Metab. 2014;19(3):407-417.
[https://www.naturalmedicinejournal.com/journal/2014-05/high-...](https://www.naturalmedicinejournal.com/journal/2014-05/high-
protein-diets-and-longevity)

In my opinion it is likely that the higher mortality is not entirely caused by
protein intake itself (although there is some evidence that high-protein
enviroments are mutagenic in yeasts), but is due to either the increased
cancer risk from processed meat (nitrosamines) and/or red meat intake.

~~~
naasking
From your link, "the subjects consumed 1,823 calories on average per day, of
which the majority came from carbohydrates (51%), followed by fat (33%) and
protein (16%), with most of it (11%) derived from animal protein. The percent
of calorie intake from protein was used to categorize subjects into a high-
protein group (20% or more of calories from protein), a moderate-protein group
(10–19% of calories from protein), and a low-protein group (less than 10% of
calories from protein)."

Strange, that doesn't seem like a high protein diet to me. Athletes,
particularly resistance trained athletes, regularly consume 30% or more of
their calories in protein.

Further, from your link, "These associations [of protein -> higher mortality]
were either abolished or attenuated if the proteins were plant-derived." So
protein itself is not the problem, despite the study's authors repeatedly
asserting this.

------
danieltillett
When I was young(er) I did CR for a few years. The first 10kg was easy, the
next 5kg hard, and the last 5kg a total struggle. What really got to me is
that all I thought and dreamed about was food - I still remember some of my
food dreams from this time and this was 20 years ago.

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grvdrm
Likely obvious to many in this group, but I think the right phrasing is
"ordinary calorie" rather than "reduced-calorie" diet. People routinely eat
more than they need and misunderstand that they are burning most of their
calories while working out.

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Capaverde
I have been on a reduced calorie diet (one meal a day) since the start of
february and have lost over 10 kg of both fat and muscle.

~~~
dijit
10KG? in 6 weeks? that sounds like a dangerously high amount of weight loss.

~~~
Capaverde
I went from 66 kg to ~55kg, eating only one lunch a day plus some fruits. I
think I've gotten way too thin, that around 58 kg would have been better, and
that's why I'm thinking of starting to supplement. I also have kept on
exercising plenty, muay thai and boxing, and that might be why I've lost this
much weight, even though I wasn't obese when I started.

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waltherp
If you can’t pronounce it, don’t eat it - somebody

~~~
looeee
Quinoa?

------
romanovcode
Jesus christ, just 1-2 months ago there was another HN "scientific" post that
it actually does not.

Can we make up our minds already?

