Anti-Aging Diet

The Longevity Diet

"By eating right, you maximize the probability that you won't develop conditions like diabetes or Alzheimer's," says James Joseph, Ph.D., a neuroscientist at the USDA Human Nutrition Research Center on Aging at Tufts University. Beyond choosing the best foods, new and intriguing evidence shows that eating less — less than you probably think — can reduce the toll time takes on your body.

We pored over the latest research on how food affects your life span and found seven no-fail food rules:

RULE 1: Go For Color
RULE 2: Rely On Real Food, Not Supplements
RULE 3: Avoid Processed Foods
RULE 4: Don't Be Afraid Of (Good) Fats
RULE 5: Sip Red Wine
RULE 6: Guzzle Green Tea
RULE 7: Eat Less

RULE 1: Go For Color

Luckily, spotting foods high in antioxidants is easy, thanks to a handy trick of nature: They're the ones bursting with color. Berries help maintain cognitive and motor functioning as we age. Pomegranates have been found to reduce the risk of heart attack and stroke. And results recently published in the British Journal of Cancer show that broccoli and brussels sprouts contain compounds that help prevent breast cancer.

RULE 4: Don't Be Afraid Of (Good) Fats

Unsaturated fats from vegetable oils, nuts, avocados, and fish improve insulin sensitivity and reduce blood lipids. That translates into lower risk for heart disease, diabetes, and stroke.Healthy fats help make the Mediterranean-style diet — consisting mostly of vegetables, nuts, beans, olive oil, and fish — so superior.

Treating yourself to salmon and other fish that deliver omega-3 fatty acids two to four times a week, along with a small handful of nuts a day, may reduce your risk of heart disease by 30 percent and lower your cholesterol as well.

RULE 7: Eat Less

There's a two-part solution. First, start weight training, if you don't already, and keep it up through the years to retain calorie-burning muscles.

And, more important, start cutting calories — while keeping nutrients. This will help you maintain low blood pressure and low levels of bad cholesterol and triglycerides. Reduced calorie intake has also been linked to lower risk of cancer and Alzheimer's.

The National Academy of Science has several theories about why eating less makes such a difference. While we often strive to boost our metabolism to stay slim, some researchers believe we need to do the opposite to live longer: A low-cal diet slows your metabolism, and a slow metabolism produces fewer free radicals. When you eat less, you also produce less glucose, which has been linked to cell damage. And low-calorie diets reduce your body's core temperature and its response to insulin, both of which may increase longevity in humans.

This rule is the toughest one of all to follow. But if it makes you feel better, Sergei Romashkan, M.D., Ph.D., chief of clinical trials at the National Institute of Aging, says that eating 25 percent less than usual caused very little crankiness in his study subjects. "Our participants were quite happy and full," he says.