Calorie Restriction

Have you ever been incredibly poor? Ever been unhealthy? Ever been a fat American? Well here's your chance to change! (no, don't move to Mexico, easier than that)

This tangent (when I was about to go to bed) is thanks to good ol' James John. As the name shows, this is about Calorie Restriction. Now, this was a concept i thought of in improper terms, but it appears it may be healthier than I thought.

Calorie Restriction
Calorie Restriction is a diet choice that has low calorie count, while maintaining micro-nutrients. Basically, it is consuming very few calories while not suffering from malnutrition, which is a very hard line to find. If you do not get enough, you may end up suffering from anemia and malnutrition. If you get too many, you're obviously not restricting them Mr. Flabby ;)

UPS AND DOWNS
Now, here are the potential benefits of this process.

• Improved life span
• Lower bad cholesterol, higher good
• Lower blood pressure
• Lower free-radical count
• Less cost in terms of food
• Reduced risk of cancer (all kinds)
  
• Reduced risk of stroke
  
• Reduced risk of mental disorders (Alzheimer's, Parkinson's, Huntington's, etc)
  
• Longer retention of mental capacities
• Increased mental capacity
  
• Decreased risk of disease (Virtually no cases of diabetes have been found in users of CR)
  
• VERY low triglyceride levels. Participants in CR studies were in the lower 5% of 20 year-olds for their levels... when they were 85...
  

Here are potential issues with this

• "No Reserves" that is, if you get stranded on a desert island with nothing to eat, you'll die before your "average American" friend loses his second chin. This isn't meaning you're weak, you're just not carrying a large reserve tank.
• Has not been properly studied, as humans live as long as humans, so studying them over time is a little complicated.
• Muscle-mass and ability to exercise is reduced. (For me, this is not an issue, since doing such ends in hospitalization! Ha!)
• Needs to be monitored. It is possible for this to get dangerous if your BMI drops below safe levels for your age/gender.
  
• Possible increase for health issues for people with eating disorders. Either do it right or not at all.
  

Now, the question on all of your minds is a simple one... "How does this all work?" The major way of thinking about this can be devided into three main areas: Hormesis, Evolution, and free radicals.

HORMESIS
Hormesis is basically adding pressure to coal and hoping to get a diamond. On a less "extreme" sense, it can be seen as a professor giving you a lot of homework. No homework, you slack off and don't learn. Too much, you die from papercuts, stress, and eventually don't learn. A little homework and you learn while growing as a "responsible adult". This can be applied to nature through Hormesis. Hormesis is using minor biological stressing factors to positively influence the growth of an organism. This has been a well studied and documented effect.

How does Hormesis apply to this topic? Adding a little stress to the human system increases the ability to perform. Giving your body a challenge to survive gives it the drive to survive. Everyone loves a good challenge and our bodies are not an exception. Some foods that cause mild examples of this?
Broccoli - High levels of isothocyanates cause stress on the liver, intestines, and stomach causing improved health and protien levels in cells.
Curry (curcumin) - Proven to stress cells into releasing chemicals/hormones involved in preventing MS, Heart Disease, and Alzheimer's
This doesn't mean go out and eat as much broccoli as you possibly can, as the isothocyanates are a biological stress and can actually damage certain cells if you eat too many. (too much of a good toxin... don't eat Botox kids.)


Evolution
Now, this is where it gets theoretical and kinda odd (but still cool). There are a few published articles that theorize in times of famine, human hormones shift away from "make babies" to "survive to make babies". In males, this means a shift from normal male hormonal balances to a balance slightly closer to the female hormonal balance. Now, this doesn't mean you wont wanna jump the next short skirt walking down the street, but it does mean is that the male body will start expressing the same anti-aging hormones that the female body excretes, increasing longevity while preserving your.. erm.. "drive". This was found due to the realization that "females outlive males", and they decided to see if they could change that. That's right girls, we're coming for you!

Free Radicals
As we all know, aging is basically the damage done to a body. Free radicals are the cause of a lot of this damage due to damage done to our DNA breaking down the ability to reproduce cells/repair damaged tissues.

How does this apply? Well, the more energy sources available for mitochondria to devour and convert into our energy, the less efficiently they eat and generate free radicals. The fewer available energy sources result in more efficient processing and fewer free radicals. (People with food leave more crumbs than those without) This prevents cellular damage caused to these "crumbs" and slows the aging process. Amazingly enough, making your cells more efficient at processing these energy sources also decreases the risk of type 2 diabetes.

Getting Started
Now, one good way to get started on this is to change your diet. (Hence this being a diet type) The following are a few examples of how to do this. If you really wish to start this, I recommend doing more research on your own and possibly consulting a nutritionist. The CR Society recommends several books for this. They are also a source for the information below.

Foods to avoid:

• Simple Sugars/Flours - low nutrient:calorie ratio. They also leave you wanting more sooner than foods with a higher glycemic level.
• Fatty/Red meats - Fats/Proteins are very important micronutrients, but the meat itself can cause some other complications. nutrient:calorie ratio is not the best. You don't have to go vegetarian for this, but think of it in terms of a heart-attack patient. Trim the fat and ask yourself, "is it healthy?" No? Don't eat it!
  

Foods to consume:

• Leafy and Green Vegetables - High nutrient:calorie ratio. Many have high levels of anti-oxidants, which help reduce Free Radical levels.
• Fish, Turkey, and other high nutrient:calorie ratio protein sources - Meats are a GREAT source for proteins and necessary amino acids, but don't get me wrong... they can be pretty bad for your cholesterol, blood pressure, etc. Select with care. Think of this in terms of a person with poor heart health. If it is bad for you, try to avoid it.
• Olive Oil - Whenever possible, use Olive Oil, as it contains monosaturated fats and small amounts of Omega-3.
  
• Almonds, hazelnuts, and avocados - These are some snack-type foods you can eat that contain monosaturated fats and provide necessary protein/nutrients.
• "Fatty fish" and other "fatty foods" - You need to make sure you get SOME Omega-3 in your diet. This can be done easily through fish like salmon. Now, these normally have slightly worse nutrient:calorie ratios, but the Omega-3 is worth it as long as you eat it in moderation.
• Walnuts, beans, and Winter Squash - Provide omega-3, protein, nutrients, etc.
  

Thinks to consider:

• Keep your protein levels in check. You do need protein to survive, but too much can be an issue. Recommended levels for normal people tend to be .6~.8 grams of protein per kilogram of body weight. If you wish to exercise and do muscle training, I recommend going a little higher just to prevent muscle strain and damage. Muscle training/exercise routine people should stay in the 1.5~2 grams range.
• If you choose to get protein/nutrients from a non-animal source I recommend doing a little studying. Make sure you are getting all of your amino acids, nutrients, and proteins for a balanced diet. If you don't the underpants gnomes will come in the night and steal your underwear... or you'll just get malnourishment. Same thing really.
• Omega-3 is important for you diet, but only in the range of about 2~5% of your daily fat supply. A table-spoon of Olive Oil has about .2 grams of Omega-3 in it.
  

Conclusion
As you can see, this is a diet that focuses on low calorie intake but only if you can get enough of your other nutriants. Now, if you do this, do it in a safe way. Now, it is 1:50 am. I'm tired. I'm going to bed. If you need more, check the sources or google it.

Sources
Wikipedia (of course) http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Calorie_restriction
Science Daily: http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/07/090709110836.htm
National Institutes of Health: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2253665/?tool=pmcentrez
CR Society: http://www.crsociety.org/
World's Healthiest foods: http://www.whfoods.com