Longer life and the vegan diet

April 8, 2009

the-vegan-diet

Instead of touting a miracle food, the answer might lie in the absence of food.

Eating less is shown to enhance one's life span. The reasons aren't exactly

clear yet, but one study in the Scientific American links a lower calorie diet

to enzymes in the cell mitochondria (or, the cell's powerhouse). To recap the

article, eating less slows the death of the cells since they are no longer

porous, which means proteins cannot trigger cell death by seeping in the cell.

Lack of cellular death = longer life.

How does this science relate to vegans? Well, John Robbins explains in his book,

" Diet for a New America " vegans have a longer life expectancy than those who eat

meat. Coupled with a lower body mass index (BMI), vegans might be living longer

than their meat-eating counterparts because they eat fewer calories. Raw

foodists will also see the same benefits of a longer life. Due to the obscurity

of the diet and relatively small population, data isn't available to support

that a raw foodist has a longer lifespan—just anecdotal evidence. Suffice it to

say, the same logic that promotes longer life in vegans can just as easily apply

to the raw food diet, if not more so: a raw diet rich in minerals, fiber and

vitamins tend to satiate a person for far fewer calories than a diet heavy in

mineral-deficient, high-calorie diet of processed foods. In part this has to do

with the ability to stay hydrated with greater ease. Foods that aren't cooked

are more water-dense, and therefore more hydrating.

Before going on a diet purely based on calorie restriction, what a person eats

is just as important as how much. For example, calorie-free soda tainted with

cancer-causing aspartame will be far worse for a person than a handful of

high-calorie (yet healthy) almonds. Calories must be evaluated based on what

else is in the food: ideally, eat foods that are high in nutrients and low in

calories. If it's high in calories but high in nutrients (ie, natural fats like

olives), fine. If deficient in nutrients but low in calories (ie, fat free

Pringles), try to pass.

Lastly, forced calorie restriction is not enjoyable for anyone. Many might say

that they'd be willing to shave off a few years of life to enjoy the delicacy of

prime rib. The fortunate aspect of raw foodism and veganism is that the feeling

of being deprived by not eating life-cutting high-calorie processed foods

doesn't register if they've settled into raw foodism/veganism as a lifestyle.

Thus, the vegan and raw diet can provide the best of both worlds: great healthy

food… and just a few years longer to enjoy it.

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