Table of Contents
About the author xi
Preface xiii
Where this all began xiv
Information is power xvi
Part I The Beginning of Wisdom 1
Chapter 1 Are You Ready to Enjoy Your Life? 2
Are you ready to embark on the miraculous voyage that is your life? 3
What do you really know about your health? 4
Who is in charge? 5
Who are you? 5
Listen and learn 5
Be your own light: self-awareness is key 6
Chapter 2 Healthy Centenarians: The Quest for Healthy Longevity 7
Secrets shares by world's most long-living populations 8
Okinawa: 'land of the immortals' 8
Sardinia and South Italy: Kingdom of Methuselahs 12
Is vegetarianism the main secret to a long healthy life? 13
Facts, not myths on vegetarian diets: the results of the scientific studies 14
The Seventh-day Adventist vegetarians 15
Is the hunter-gatherer lifestyle the answer for a long and healthy life? 17
Do elite athletes hold the key to longevity? 17
Chapter 3 Healthspan and the Mechanisms of Ageing 20
Why do we age? 20
Death is unavoidable, but a life of prolonged ill-health is not 21
Can we prevent ageing? 22
Is ageing inextricably linked with disease? 22
Why do people develop chronic diseases not linked to ageing itself? 24
Chronic illnesses have common causes 24
Why we need to focus first on a better lifestyle? 25
The Framingham Heart Study 26
How cancer develops? 26
Excess body fat and cancer risk 28
Part II Nourishing Your Body 29
Chapter 4 The Science of Healthy Nutrition 30
Belly fat: the enemy within 31
Why is it important to have a normal BMI? 33
Is BMI the best index to measure body fatness? 35
The importance of monitoring our body weight 35
Watch your waist, not just your weight 36
Simple ways to assess whether you have abdominal obesity 37
What is a healthy waist circumference? 37
Let's take action to reduce our waist circumference 38
What will happen with a reduction in waist circumference? 39
How fast should you lose weight? 40
How can you stop putting the weight back on? 40
Beyond weight loss: successful ageing 41
Chapter 5 Longevity Effects of Restricting Calories and Fasting 42
Calorie restriction in rodents: the fountain of youth 42
Calorie restriction in monkeys: age record-breakers 43
Does calorie restriction work in humans? 45
Too much calorie restriction can be dangerous 47
Ways to control calories, without counting 47
The importance of replacing 'junk' with healthy plant-based foods 48
Leave the table when you are 80 per cent full 49
Intermittent fasting 50
Our studies on the effects of fasting 50
Different to the 5:2 diet 51
Benefits of 'healthy' fasting 51
Time-restricted fasting: the 16:8 diet 52
Dangers of frequent eating. Don't snack. Feast! 53
Eat your food slowly 53
Chapter 6 Healthy Children 55
Epigenetics and future generations: life takes notes on our genes 55
Before creation: preconception health for strong kids 57
Why health and lifestyle in pregnancy matter 57
Healthy birth: how delivery mode and early nutrition can shape the newborn's health 59
Healthy eating for breastfeeding 60
If possible, breastfeed your baby, it will improve your health as well 62
Balancing nutrition in our growing children through puberty 63
Chapter 7 Diet Quality Matters 65
How much protein should we eat? 66
Does eating more protein increase muscle mass? 67
High-protein diets promote disease and ageing 69
The quality of protein is more important than quantity 70
Animal protein 70
Plant protein 71
Fat: is dietary fat our real enemy? 72
Not all fat is created equal 73
Carbs: healthy versus unhealthy carbohydrates 74
Fibre 76
Part III From the Mediterranean to the Healthy Longevity Diet 81
Chapter 8 The Mediterranean Diet: Where Taste Meets Health 82
The 'discovery' of the Mediterranean diet 84
Health effects of the Mediterranean diet: how solid is the scientific evidence? 85
Mechanisms behind the benefits of the Mediterranean diet 87
Reduced oxidative and inflammatory damage 88
Gut health 89
Chapter 9 Move to the Modern Healthy Longevity Diet 91
The importance of healthy food diversity 93
The modern healthy longevity food pyramid explained 93
Vegetables: the staple food of the modern diet 94
Wild edible weeds: a well of nutrients 100
Herbs and spices: maximising flavour 101
Whole grains and legumes: combining energy, fibre and proteins 106
The wonders of nuts and seeds 119
Fruit is the best dessert to nourish the skin 125
Fish: substitute meat with fish for the good of your heart 127
Extra-virgin olive oil: the healthiest condiment 129
What should be drink? 130
How much should we drink? 132
Chapter 10 Foods to Eliminate or Drastically Reduce 133
Why are ultra-processed foods bad for you? 134
Sugars: not so sweet results 135
Soft drinks and sodas 135
Salt: sneaky sodium 136
Meat: is it good or bad for your health? 139
Eat whole foods, not supplements 143
Part IV Physical Exercise as a Daily Medicine 145
Chapter 11 Maximising Health Through Physical Exercise 146
Physical inactivity: the biggest public health problem of the 21st century 147
The 2,500-year history of sports medicine 148
Chapter 12 Beneficial Effects of Aerobic Exercise 150
Burning calories with endurance exercise 151
Aerobic exercise and type 2 diabetes 154
Endurance-exercise training improves cardiovascular health 154
Aerobic exercise helps to reduce cancer risk 155
Exercise training protects memory and prevents brain fog 156
Chapter 13 Starting of Improving Aerobic-Exercise Training 157
Training intensity 157
Training duration and volume 160
Training frequency 160
High-intensity interval training: how and when? 161
Use it, lose it 163
How much exercise is too much? 164
Chapter 14 Fourtifying Muscles and Bones: The Science of Strength Training 166
Intensity, frequency repetitions and rest periods 168
Make a start with 15 minutes of a body strength training program at home 169
Chapter 15 Posture, Balance and Flexibility: The Essential Exercises 173
Pain and joint degeneration 173
Why good posture is vital 174
What is the correct posture? 175
Chapter 16 Hatha Yoga, Tai Chi and Martial Arts: East Meets West 178
Tai chi 178
Yoga 179
Slow, deep breathing: a powerful tool to fight stress and anxiety 184
Part V Prevention 189
Chapter 17 Take Preventative Action to Stay Healthy 190
Smoking kills you and harms your loved ones 190
Sun exposure and vitamin D: how, when, where and why? 192
Alcohol: the good, the bad, and the ugly 195
Brush your teeth regularly: gum disease causes systemic inflammation 197
Chapter 18 The Importance of Health Screening 199
What tests do we need and when? 200
Screening for cancer 201
Beyond active surveillance and watchful waiting 204
Part VI Our Minds 207
Chapter 19 Nourish Your Mind and Train Your Brain 208
Improving our brain function: cognitive training 209
Brain plasticity can improve into old age 210
Fasting and endurance exercise boost effects of cognitive training 212
Preventing cognitive decline 212
A healthy diet helps to prevent cognitive decline 213
Physical exercise can help prevent dementia 214
Quality sleep lowers the risk for dementia 215
The importance of strong social relationships 215
Chapter 20 Rest and Sleep Quality 216
What science tells us happens when we fall asleep 217
Benefits of sleep 218
Slow-wave sleep disruption promotes dementia 219
How many hours should we sleep? 220
How to improve your sleep quality 221
Chapter 21 Mindfulness Meditation: Learning to Live in the Present 223
Mindfulness exercises: the art of now 224
Mindfulness combats 'constantly thinking disorder' 224
Inner serenity time: how to begin 225
Ten benefits of mindfulness meditation 226
How negative emotions affect our wellbeing 228
What is your level of mindfulness? 231
Mindfulness exercises 232
Mindfulness is a precious instrument to boost creativity 233
Chapter 22 Family, Happiness and a Future Without Fear 235
The importance of family, friends and community 235
Knowing ourselves: the way to do is being 236
The stream of life 237
Maximising our potential: living according to our own nature 237
Beyond the sensory: freedom from cultural illusions 238
Intuition: the highest form of intelligence 239
Happiness: a plant to nurture? 242
Six interventions to develop and increase your happiness 244
Of life and death 246
Transforming yourself one step at a time 247
Part VII Our World 251
Chapter 23 A Healthy Sustainable Environment to Live in 252
Chapter 24 Pollution is Making us Sick 255
No 'normal' concentrations of particulate matter exist 255
Where do these fine particles come from? 256
Livestock and environmental pollution 257
Global heating 259
Chapter 25 Securing the Future 260
Chapter 26 My Message to the Reader 263
Appendix What Gets Measured, Gets Done: Track Your Progress 265
Measuring markers of systemic health 266
Measuring markers of cardiovascular health 267
'Bad' cholesterol 268
'Good' cholesterol 270
Blood glucose and other markers of optimal glucose metabolism 271
Blood pressure 273
Maximal oxygen consumption and fitness 274
Monitoring progress - other tests 275
References/bibliography 276
Acknowledgements 318