Anti-Ageing Diets Do Not Work

A recent study has indicated that anti-ageing diets, as well as creams, simply do not work. Diets which place emphasis on antioxidants to help prevent the effects of ageing may be a waste of time and money.

Scientists at University College London found that Nematode worms given a diet rich in antioxidants, which have been reported to help reduce tissue damage by combating free radicals, did not live longer. The research team, headed by Dr David Gems, concluded that there was no evidence that antioxidants can reduce the ageing process.

Antioxidants are a big seller in the health food and supplement industries. This research, if taken seriously by consumers, could impact on the health food market in a big way. The idea of free radicals has been around for half a century, and has been accepted as fact, mostly due to all the press about how they damage cells, and also how antioxidants slow this process down. However, the theory has not stood up to a scientific process, and therefore has to be discarded until a scientific process is able to prove that antioxidants do in fact have an impact on the ageing process.

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What is the theory of free radicals and ageing?

In 1956 it was theorized that molecular damage (i.e. cell / skin tissue damage) was caused by reactive forms of oxygen, known as “free radicals”. The process is known as oxidative stress. Antioxidants were thought to combat the free radicals, reducing their ability to damage cells. However, recent research may explain why this theory has never been proved – it was just a theory and failed a proper scientific test.

The obvious argument against these new findings is that the nematode worm will not react in the same way as human skin. However, nematode worms actually share many genes with humans. The worms in the experiment were produced with greater ability to fight free radicals. The idea being that they would have an advantage over normal nematodes in terms of ageing and lifespan. However, results showed that the enhanced worms fared no better than others, which suggested that oxidative stress did not affect the ageing process.

Comments from the Medical and Scientific Community:

“The fact is that we don’t understand much about the fundamental mechanisms of ageing – the free radical theory has filled a knowledge vacuum for over 50 years now, but it doesn’t stand up to the evidence. It is clear that if superoxide is involved, it plays only a small part in the story – oxidative damage is clearly not a universal, major driver of the ageing process. A healthy, balanced diet was important for reducing the risk of many “old age” diseases, such as cancer, diabetes and osteoporosis, but there was no clear evidence that eating antioxidants could slow or prevent ageing, and even less evidence to support the claims made by antioxidant pills and creams. ” Dr Gems, University College London

This research has been endorsed by the Wellcome Trust, who have stated:

“Research such as this points to how much we have to learn about ageing, and the importance of understanding the mechanisms behind this process.” Dr Alan Schafer, Head of Molecular and Physiological Sciences, Wellcome Trust

The British Dietetic Association has added that it had been hard to find the evidence to support antioxidants from previous studies:

“All the evidence has come from epidemiological studies looking at the whole diet – where there was some sign of benefit to people who ate diets with antioxidants, but also who ate lots of other good things. What this shows is that there is likely to be no one ‘magic bullet’ in terms of diet and health -the important thing is still achieving a healthy balance.” British Dietetic Association

“Antioxidant vitamins, like any other vitamins were never intended for the prevention of chronic disease and mortality. They are not magic bullets. They are intended for health maintenance on the basis of their various physiological roles in the body and in the case of the antioxidant vitamins, this does, in appropriate amounts, include a protective antioxidant effect in the body’s tissues.” Pamela Mason, of the Health Supplements Information Service

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