Nutrition rules >>>> Nutrition for centenarians

Nutrition for centenarians.

The dream of many people to prolong their youth not just by age, but by health, which could be fully disposed of, has led many researchers in the field of biological aging and the factors that slow it down to a very interesting result. It turns out that the functional health of our body continues until the organs of internal secretion, that is, those organs that have endocrine glands, begin to "junk". That is, in ordinary language, our biological age is closely tied to metabolic processes in all functional areas of the body: cardiovascular, digestive, sexual, nervous, and so on. All body functions are controlled by substances produced by the endocrine system, which means that our age depends on the correct functioning of various hormones.

This means that it is necessary to maintain the endocrine system in a healthy state, which is directly tied to the quality of life: absence of stress, good ecology and rational nutrition. And if we are able to influence at least one of these factors, it delays our aging and contributes to the continuation of a full life.

Studying the nutrition of centenarians, the researchers noticed that their diet consists of foods that are rich in substances that have an indirect effect on the work of the endocrine glands.

None of the centenarians has ever abstained from eating fats and carbohydrates, did not switch to categorically plant foods, and managed to keep the endocrine glands (spleen, pancreas, liver, adrenal glands, thyroid gland, areas of the brain responsible for hormone production) functional. It is worth clarifying in advance that our brain loves exactly sweet and fatty and forms its cells from these constituent parts (of course, in the processes of converting these substances into the components it needs). But so that fatty deposits do not interfere with the permeability of blood vessels, do not provoke thrombosis and other conditions that disrupt blood flow, their surplus must be disposed of in time and taken out of the body. This is exactly what the substances that make up the fiber of plants are involved - the basis of healthy digestion, healthy peristalsis and the correct distribution of food in the intestines for the speedy digestion and assimilation of food.

This is how the theory of a balanced diet appeared, which should include all the components of food: fats, proteins, carbohydrates, fiber and water.

Centenarians have no imbalances in their diets, none of them preferred mono diets (protein, carbohydrate or fat), since any mono diet causes a shift in metabolic processes towards compensating for the lack of other substances. And this is already regarded as a metabolic failure, and in translation into ordinary language - a malfunction in the work of individual endocrine glands, which either do not receive useful substances for themselves or experience an excess of them and try to turn on compensatory mechanisms for processing and removing excess from the body. This is how our body works, regardless of our desire, it does not tolerate imbalances in its biochemistry and includes compensatory functions, which is an overload of some organs responsible for the flawless work of the endocrine glands.

How is the nutrition of centenarians distributed per day in the average measurement? The average daily caloric content of the diet of a long-liver is figures in the range from 2500 kcal to 1900 kcal.

The distribution of proteins, fats and carbohydrates in this segment (2500-1900) is as follows: proteins (3.5 – 1.8 ounces), fats (3.2 – 1.3 ounces), carbohydrates (13 - 11 ounces).

In centenarians, a tendency towards a decrease in protein food of animal origin with an increase in the number of years lived and an increase in the amount of vegetable protein in the diet, which is less high in calories, is observed throughout their life. This suggests that with age, our body begins not to like "meat" proteins too much and prefers lighter vegetable proteins (with the exception of mushrooms and legumes, which are also difficult for the body to utilize, like "meat" proteins). Therefore, with age, it is useful to reduce the amount of meat dishes in the diet and add vegetable proteins, which are abundant in cereals, eggs, fish, seafood, sour-milk products, and cheeses. The same amino acids vital to the body can be found in eggs, fish, seafood, which are easier to digest and do not strain the endocrine glands.

With age, it is customary to switch from fried, jerky or semi-cooked meat to boiled meat, from which excess fats are boiled (or to lean poultry, hare).

Fatty foods do not fade into the background, but go into the category of vegetable fats. Where to look for vegetable fats? A lot of healthy fats are found in nuts and seeds: walnuts, pistachios, pine nuts, pumpkin seeds and sunflower seeds). And in addition to the fatty component, these food products will become a source of vitamins A, B group, vitamin E, vitamin K, as well as trace elements necessary with increasing age of Iodine, Iron, Potassium, Magnesium, Selenium, Zinc. All these trace elements affect the long-term preservation of skin cells, organ parenchyma, the integrity of the vascular wall, the work of muscle fibers and nerve cells.

Carbohydrates make up a significant part in the diet of a long-liver, but these are carbohydrates of plant origin - sugars of fruits and vegetables, grains and nuts, and not artificially created sweets.

From the abuse of wheat bakery products (sandwiches, pies), one should move on to cereals and rye pastries - this is the same bread, but in a more refined and digestible form for the body.

Among the drinks, priorities should be given not to juices and alcohol with a high percentage of alcohol, but to herbal infusions and teas, compotes and fruit drinks, jelly, fruit kvass. But it should be borne in mind that drinks with a high tannin content slow down digestion and do not contribute to the full assimilation of food, which is very important with increasing age. These drinks include green tea, coffee, herbal infusions containing a high percentage of tanning agents (usually the description of such plants pays a lot of attention to the composition of just this kind of substances, which is worth paying attention to). In addition, tannins harm the rapid evacuation of digestive waste and cause constipation or colitis.

Grape wines with a low alcohol content are not as bad for age-related health as vodka, cognac, beer, and the like. Seasonings and hot sauces, on the one hand, provoke the digestive function to work harder, and on the other hand, they interfere with the digestion process in other parts of the digestive tract, where gastrointestinal hormones are involved in digestion, produced by cells scattered over the mucous membrane lining the intestines. You need to know about this point, and take it into account in the preparation of dishes - do not go over it with seasonings and spicy dishes.

By adjusting the diet in time with age, you can achieve good results and keep tissues and organs healthy for the long term.