While waiting for a miracle treatment, there are other ways to slow down the ageing process.
1. An ascetic lifestyle
Prof. David Sinclair is clear: no more feasting, which causes oxidative stress in the body. Ideally, you should reduce your daily intake by one third, giving priority to fruit and vegetables. Fasting is also recommended for two days a year, or more if possible.
2. Stop toxins
Excessive smoking or drinking quickly damages the DNA and cells.
3. Abusing resveratrol
This is Professor Sinclair's pet molecule. It is found in cocoa, nuts, blackcurrants, pomegranates, green tea and wine. It is produced by environmental or pathogenic stress (grapes that needed to defend themselves from aggression). When it comes to wine, favour small vintages (a glass of tasty Merlot).
4. Get back into your trainers
In 2009, Dr. Blackburn was awarded the Nobel Prize in Medicine for his discovery of telomeres. They're a bit like the plastic tips on our shoelaces, except that they are found at the end of our DNA helices. The longer and stronger they are, the more intact our DNA remains. Over the course of a lifetime, telomeres shorten. The researchers observed that regular (daily) physical activity lengthens the telomeres by 10%. For the “anti-trainer” brigade, some plants also have very beneficial effects: purslane, Ginkgo biloba or milk thistle.
5. Taking a break from sugar
In excess, sugar leads to glycation, which is responsible for the ageing in our body. Two glasses of fizzy drinks a day for ten years can age our bodies by six years. But this applies to all refined sugars.
6. Making love
By switching to two sessions of love-making twice a week (from one), you can gain seven years of life expectancy. With orgasms, it's even more...
7. Stopping inflammation
The idea is to stop the natural inflammatory process in our cells, which results in osteoarthritis and chronic pain, as well as more serious diseases such as Alzheimer's, Parkinson's or cancer. Some foods have already proved their worth: turmeric, wild garlic, cabbage, seafood and pineapple.
