Posted
Tuesday, November 24, 2009
It all started with the work of Dr Roy Walford back in the 1980’s who discovered extraordinary longevity benefits in animals by eating ‘optimum nutrition’ but with restricted calories. Now we know that the process of eating much less in a day is one of the 
factors (two others being exercise and resveratrol) that switches on the SIRT1 gene nicknamed the ‘skinny gene’. As Jerome Burne writes ‘It improves protection from free radical damage and repair of DNA damage, cuts down inflammation and makes mitochondria, the tiny power plants in each of our cells work more efficiently’.
Think of it from an evolutionary point of view. We are hunter gatherers and not all days are successful as others, so having modified fast days and feast days makes sense. It may also be easier than trying to eat less every day. Of course, part of the gold of low GL diet is you don’t feel hungry anyway, but you could do this along with intermittent dieting by pushing it one day, and allowing yourself to be on the edge of hunger, and then being more lenient the next. You only need a 20% drop in calories to trigger the SIRT1 effect so this could equate to 50 GLs one day, then 40 the next, especially if you make your 40 GL day low fat.
The other trigger is exercise. The more you do the more this gene kicks in.
Then there’s the very interesting research on resveratrol, which I take every day in an antioxidant formula. (Resveratrol is found in green vegetables, mulberries, citrus fruit and the skins of peanuts, but is most abundant in red grapes and good quality red wines. A good bottle of merlot, for example, can provide 20mg, whereas cheap wines often have as little as 2mg.) Researchers at Harvard Medical School have shown that resveratrol activates the SIRT1 gene in yeast thus extending life span by more than 50 per cent!
Not only does a concentrate of resveratrol switch on the survival gene but it also favourably affects over a hundred genes that help programme you for longevity. Dr John Pezzutto of the University of Illinois, describes resveratrol as ‘a whiff that induces a biologically specific tsunami’, referring to its wide range of positive effects on gene expression away from disease and towards health and youth. Resveratrol may even help you lose weight. Firstly, it inhibits fatty acid synthase, an enzyme needed to convert sugars into fat, and reduces insulin levels, which means less blood sugar lows and less hunger. Resveratrol is currently being tested in clinical trials for diabetes.
The combination of a low GL diet, eating less every other day, supplementing 25mg of resveratrol a day, and exercising is probably a winning formula for losing weight and living longer.
Comments
I read the article in tday’s Mail and Patrick’s response and would like to know if there is a Uk distributor of Resveratrol.
Posted by Karin Rodgers on 11/24 at 02:37 PM
I don’t see how this works alongside the Holford diet (which I have just started). If the aim is to keep blood sugar steady, then not eating, or eating significantly less, will surely bring about a drop in blood sugar levels?
Posted by Hazel Bateman on 11/24 at 04:58 PM
very interesting, WHERE CAN I GET A HIGH QUALITY RESVERATROL??. I already take the Optimum Nutrtion blister pack. I have been doing the low GL diet with a 40GL intake for four months and during the last month I haven’t lost anything, though I am within a stone of my target weight. Are you saying I should INCREASE my intake on alternate days so that I do one day 50GL and one 40GL??? Or do I need to reduce to 30GL alternate days?? I’m confused!!!!!
Posted by verybusywendy@gmail.com on 11/25 at 09:32 AM
Good Afternoon,
Just a little query, a cheap bottle of wine has 2mg of Resveratrol, whereas a good quality one has 20mg? One needs to take 25mg a day! Does that mean I need to drink one bottle of expensive red wine a day? Surely not. I normally have one small glass. Not enough? What about dark chocolate? That contains it as well, doesn’t it?
I thought I was doing fine. Please advise.
Thank you lots.
Kind Regards
Silvia
Posted by S Haytack on 11/25 at 02:05 PM
Can you tell me which supplement Patrick refers to as an ‘antoxidant formula’? Also has Resveratrol been tested in humans for safety and efficacy?
Posted by Phillippa Lambert on 11/25 at 06:40 PM
I would like to know more about the resveratrol supplement and where to get it Catherine Ui Chadhain Galway
Posted by serenity@eircom.net on 11/26 at 10:21 AM
I too am looking for Patrick’s source of resveratrol please.
Posted by C Corner on 11/26 at 11:28 AM
FEEDBACK TO YOUR COMMENTS from Susannah, qualified Nutritional Therapist posting on behalf of Patrick:
For those of you looking for a source of Resveratrol, I suggest you check out the range of Biocare’s antioxidant formulas (eg AGE Antioxidant), available from http://www.TotallyNourish.com or a good local healthfood shop.
Re red wine, no we are not suggesting you drink a bottle or more each day! The example is given to show the best food sources with an idea of Resveratrol content, and no more than one glass a day is recommended. But combine red wine with other sources, ie those listed in the blog and also, as Silvia points out, good quality dark chocolate (but again, limit intake – ie no more than a few squares a day).
Re following the Holford Low-GL Diet and fasting, the aim with weight loss is to get your blood sugar balanced first. Once you feel you are stable, you can then opt on some days to reduce your overall intake of food, but stick to those foods which help to stablise energy such as fish, eggs and other protein foods plus plenty of vegetables, and limit fruit and other carbs. You don’t want to trigger a blood sugar low, so if you start feeling jittery or craving sweet foods, concentrate instead on stablising blood sugar by eating regularly, then try again once you are back in balance.
Posted by Susannah on 11/26 at 05:07 PM
Has Resveratrol been scientifically tested for safety in humans? I have heard it can cause unpleasant side-effects in some people.
Posted by Phillippa Lambert on 11/26 at 05:23 PM
Sorry for the delay. I’ve been on a gruelling lecture/media tour in South Africa with my new book Ten Secrets of 100% Healthy people. There have been many trials of resveratrol in human studies, many of which I refer to in the Ten Secrets book (see ‘books’ section from 1st December) which you can pre-order. Theres’ no hint of safety issues. Organic merlot or Welch’s red grape juice are the best drink sources. I take 20mg a day in my AGE Antioxidant.
Hazel and ‘verybusywendy’- I’d recommend 40GLs on day and 50GLs the next. In really terms it’s going close to hungry one day and being more lenient the next.What I do practically is to eat little some days.
Posted by patrick on 11/30 at 07:42 AM
all i want to know. How many vitmans one can take?
because it is getting beyond the joke.
Posted by Mrs Nijjar on 12/21 at 08:36 PM
Is there anything on the labels of red wines that indicate their resveratrol content? Any countries of origins or labels to look out for? Is it best to stick to Merlot?
Posted by christine@michaelwright.co.uk on 02/04 at 11:22 PM
Unfortunately this isn’t declared on the label and i suspect the quality of the grape and th wine making process makes a big difference. I think the only way to guarantee intake is to supplement. If i can find a relaibel source of consistent levels in different wines I’ll let you know. Has anyone seen this kind of information from a reliable source?
Posted by patrick on 02/05 at 11:33 AM
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