Life can be sweeter if you cut out the sugar

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Hi Everyone,

http://news./s/nm/20071002/sc_nm/longevity_sweets_dc

Has anyone read this article? Let me know what you all think.

Thanks,

Marnie

Life can be sweeter if you cut out the sugar By Kahn

Tue Oct 2, 12:54 PM ET

Giving up sweets and avoiding vitamins could help you live longer,

German researchers said on Tuesday.

They found that restricting glucose -- a simple sugar found in foods

such as sweets that is a primary source of energy for the body -- set

off a process that extended the life span of some worms by up to 25

percent.

The key was boosting the level of " free radicals " -- unstable

molecules that can damage the body and which people often try to get

rid of by consuming food or drinks rich in anti-oxidants such as

vitamin E, they said in a study published in the journal Cell

Metabolism.

Restricting glucose first spurred the worms to generate more free

radicals, but then they quickly built up long-lasting defenses

against them, said Ristow, an endocrinologist at the

University of Jena and the German Institute of Human Nutrition, who

led the study.

" During the process, the worm generates more free radicals, which

activates defenses against free radicals within the worm, " he said in

a telephone interview. " The bad thing in the end promotes something

good. "

The body needs glucose, but taking in too much was unhealthy, Ristow

said.

Scientists have long known that restricting calorie intake in worms

and monkeys increases longevity, and the study narrowed that idea

further, to glucose.

The study also for the first time points to a possible reason why

antioxidants -- long thought to promote health -- might do more harm

than good, Ristow said.

The German team used a chemical that blocked the worms' ability to

process glucose in a treatment that extended their life span by up to

25 percent, the equivalent of 15 years in humans.

The worms unable to depend on glucose increased energy power sources

in certain cells for fuel. That activity produced more free radicals,

which in turn generated enzymes that strengthened long-time

protection against the harmful molecules, Ristow said.

However, antioxidants and vitamins given to some worms erased these

benefits by neutralizing free radicals and preventing the body from

generating the defenses, Ristow said.

" These latter findings tentatively suggest that the widespread use of

antioxidants as human food supplements may exert undesirable

effects, " the researchers wrote.