Extra C Gets an "F"

Don’t bother dosing uo on Vitamin C before exercising. Researchers at Colorado State University who tested mega-doses of vitamin C in hopes of proving that it could improve exercise performance discovered that the vitamin had no effect at all. The study, pulished in the Journal of Applied Physiology, aimed to link huge doses of Vitamin C - 500 milligrams daily plus intravenous infusion - with inceased breathing capacity and heart output. But neither older nor younger participants benefited as hoped, though the vitamin did reduce chemical damage to cells from oxidative stress. The researchers speculate that taking supplements may benefit only people lacking in normal levels of vitamin C. If you’re already getting enough C, megadoses won’t help you at the gym.

Eat Less, Live Longer, Stay Younger

People who reduce their calorie intake by 25 per cent for 6 months reduced their fasting insulin levels and core body temperature, two biomarkers which, at lower levels, have been associated with longer life spans, according to a recent study. Researchers randomized 48 overweight men (aged 50 and younger) and women (aged 45 and younger) into a control group on a weight maintenance diet, and intervention groups placed on calorie restriction, calorie restriction with exercise, and a very low-calorie diet. After 6 months, people in all 3 intervention groups lost significant weight and lowered their fasting insulin levels and core body temperatures, according to the study, published in the Journal of the American Medical Association. Also, researchers found that those in the intervention groups experienced less oxidative stress damage to their DNA.

In yet another study published in the Journal of the American College of Cardiology, people who ate a nutritionally balanced diet with only two-thirds a typical daily caloric intake of about 2,500 calories exhibited fewer age-related changes in diastolic function. Poor diastolic function is a leading cause of age-related heart failure. In the study, 25 people ate about 1,670 calories daily - for a mean of 6.5 years. Their low-calorie diets were high in nutrition and virtually excluded saturated fats, salt and simple carbohydrates. When their hearts were compared to age- and gender-matched controls, their diastolic function was significantly better and was comparable to that of younger patients. They also had lower blood pressure and lower levels of systemic inflammation as measured by C-reactive protein. Many experts hypothesize that infammation may be the reason behind aging on a biochemical and cellular level.

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