|
 |
 |
 |
| Last updated |
|
|
|
|
| Last updated |
| Conclusion |
||
| Modifiable risk factors, life style choices about
diet, smoking, exercise and antioxidant supplementation, substantially influence how long
we will live. The bonus years we earn by making good choices can double the number of
healthy years a sixty-year-old will enjoy.
A decade ago, Denham Harman, the scientist who first articulated The Free Radical Theory of Aging in the 1950s, wrote: "It is reasonable to expect on the basis of present data that a judicious selection of diets and antioxidant supplements will increase the healthy, active life span by 5-10 or more years." Some felt he was overstating the case. Today, our understanding of the antioxidant network, and how it modulates genes critical to healthy aging, has matured. The corollary of The Free Radical Theory of Aging - that supplementation with antioxidants may reduce the rate of aging - has a persuasive theoretical basis, extensive experimental and epidemiological evidence, and convincing support from the regrettably few intervention studies that have been funded and reported. I am not a doctor, but as a scientist who studies antioxidants, and a man in the second half of life, I find the weight of scientific evidence compelling. We can all reasonably expect to enjoy a longer, healthier old age, adding life to our years. |
||
|
||
 |
 |
|
