How To Live Longer And Prevent Disease

Seven Secrets Of Longevity

1. Eat Fewer Calories and Live Longer

Eating more calories than the body needs to maintain a thin, muscular weight ages us. Extra calories (whether from fat, carbohydrate, or protein) are especially toxic when they are low nutrient calories; the so-called "empty" calories of refined and highly-processed foods. For our cells to be well nourished and maintain a clean internal environment, all of the calories we eat must be nutrient-rich. The most nutrient-rich foods are vegetables, beans, fruits, grains, and nuts and seeds. Refined foods, oil, sugar, and white flour are examples of calorie-rich but nutrient-poor foods.

Centenarian studies in Europe illustrate that those individuals living into their hundreds were likely to have consumed a plant-based diet consisting of fewer than 2000 calories per day. Multiple studies have confirmed that the thinnest people live the longest.

2. Prevent Deficiencies with Plant-Based Nutrition
As seemingly healthful as one's diet may be, disease, accelerated aging, or even death can occur if that person is missing B12, vitamin D, or any other individual nutrient. For example, one well-known advocate of a fruit-based, raw-food diet, died in his sixties of a vitamin B12 deficiency. The B12 deficiency leads to high levels of homocysteine, which can destroy the heart and blood vessels, even while the person eats an otherwise excellent vegetarian diet.

The most dramatic finding in nutritional science in the last fifty years is the power of plant-derived phytochemicals to affect health. Phytochemicals, along with the rich assortment of powerful antioxidants found in unrefined plant foods, fuel a defensive system that removes toxic cellular metabolites that age us. Phytochemicals also are required for maintenance and repair of our DNA.

Cancer may be promoted by toxic compounds, but we have cellular machinery, fueled by phytochemicals, to detoxify and remove noxious agents and to repair any damage done.

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Dr. Fuhrman is a board certified family physician and a graduate of the University Of Pennsylvania School Of Medicine. He is the author of the national best selling book Eat To Live and is considered a world leader in the area of nutrition-based weight loss. Dr. Fuhrman has appeared on Good Morning America, Fox News, CNN and MSN. Mehmet Oz M.D., the renowned heart surgeon, calls Dr. Fuhrman's program: "A Medical Breakthrough."

To download the first chapter of Dr. Fuhrman's latest book, Eat For Health (free) you can click here and you can read it in PDF format. It gives an excellent introduction, and really focuses on the WHY of his approach.

Dr. Joel Fuhrman's work is a must read for anyone looking to lose weight and improve their health. If you want to learn more about the ideas presented in this article, his books show you how to put his ideas into practice.

References:
1. Blair SN, Kampert JB, Kohl HW 3rd, et al. Influence of cardiorespiratory fitness and other precursors on cardiovascular disease and all-cause mortality in men and women. JAMA 1996;276:205-210.