French biochemist explains if fasting can give you a long life: ‘If you eat fewer calories…’

What is the impact of fasting on human lifespan? Can calorie restriction slow down ageing? Jessie Inchauspe, a French biochemist, known as Glucose Goddess on social media, explored these questions in a February 18 Instagram video she posted. Also read | Does intermittent fasting actually work? Health coach explains what most people get wrong and how to follow this diet

What animal studies reveal about longevity

She shared that early rat and mouse studies from the 1980s were inconclusive, showing highly varied results. Jessie said that two significant 25-year studies conducted on monkeys provided more definitive insights. These studies revealed that monkeys already consuming a healthy diet saw no increase in lifespan when their caloric intake was reduced.

Conversely, monkeys on a poor, high-sugar diet did live longer when they ate fewer calories, suggesting that the potential longevity benefits of fasting are dependent on the quality of an individual’s diet.

What we know so far about calorie restrictions

Jessie said in the video, “If you eat fewer calories, will you live longer? Science tells us that it depends. In two amazing 25-year-long studies done in the US, the scientists showed that monkeys who were on a very healthy diet did not see an increase in lifespan when they ate less over those 25 years. But monkeys that had a very poor, unhealthy, high sugar diet, then yes, they lived longer if they ate fewer calories.”

She added, “So the benefits of fasting on extending how long you live depend on the food that you’re eating. It’s so fascinating. And in the 80s, this idea that fasting extends lifespan started on rat and mouse studies. And they were kind of inconclusive. Some showed an 80 percent increase in lifespan. Some showed a reduction in lifespan when you reduced calories. But these two studies on monkeys teach us a lot. Fasting and the benefits of fasting on extending your lifespan depend on your diet.”

In her caption, she wrote: “The idea that fasting extends lifespan began with a 1982 study in rats, which showed an 80 pecent increase in lifespan with alternate-day feeding. However, later studies on rats, mice, and monkeys produced mixed results. For example, monkeys on a high-sugar diet lived longer when fasting, while monkeys eating healthy whole foods showed little to no lifespan increase with fasting. In humans, there hasn’t been a good study on the impact of caloric restriction or fasting on lifespan to date.”

Overall, while calorie restriction and fasting show promise, individual results may vary depending on factors like diet quality, genetics, and overall health. More research is needed to fully understand their effects on human lifespan.

Note to readers: This report is based on user-generated content from social media. HT.com has not independently verified the claims and does not endorse them.

This article is for informational purposes only and not a substitute for professional medical advice.