A doctor has revealed on food you should “never eat” and a simple change you can make to your diet that will help you live longer.
Dr Mark Hyman, 64, a longevity expert, said: “Most of what we see as ageing is actually abnormal.
“The decline that happens is modifiable and we can reverse our biological age by how we eat, exercise and manage stress, even as we get chronologically older.
“Food is the most important lever we have to pull on this and people need to understand that what they eat is transforming everything about their health at every moment.”
Dr Hyman, who helped tranform Bill and Hillary Clinton’s diets, has shared his advice on healthy eating and healthy recipes in his new book, The Young Forever Cookbook.
He shared that the key to living longer and disease-free is not as complex as some people might thing – cutting out sugar and starch.
He said: “It’s removing the things we know are harmful and adding in the foods that are protective. The things we know drive accelerated ageing are predominantly starch and sugar,” he explained.
Starch is a type of carbohydrate found in white bread, white rice and pastries, which can cause insulin resistance and inflammation throughout the body.
In addition, Dr Hyman advises against consuming ultra-processed food. “Ultra-processed food is generally made in factories with strange ingredients with names you can’t pronounce that have been linked to increased mortality,” he says.
A study published in JAMA Internal Medicine in 2019 revealed that for every 10 per cent of your diet that is ultra-processed, your risk of an early death increases by 14 per cent.
Lastly, Dr Hyman recommends eating more anti-inflammatory fruit and vegetables. “We need large amounts of naturally-occurring phytochemicals. These have longevity benefits and are found in plant foods,” he says.
These beneficial compounds are found in fruit, vegetables, nuts, herbs and wholegrains.
“These regulate all the pathways that have to do with longevity, inflammation, oxidative stress, mitochondrial function, DNA repair and blood sugar. So these phytochemicals are not really optional.”
He also advises consuming 30g of protein at breakfast for the average person, which can include protein shakes.
The doctor and author also advises people to fast for around 12 horus overnight. Research indicates that this method can aid weight loss, enhance gut health, reduce inflammation and improve blood sugar levels.
Drinking liquid calories such as juice or sodas is the “biggest driver of insulin resistance and prediabetes,” he said, so “stick to water, coffee and tea”.
Insulin resistance happens when insulin (a hormone released by the pancreas to lower blood sugar levels) isn’t functioning properly, causing the organ to release increasing amounts of insulin. This can eventually exhaust the pancreas.