Joseph S. Takahashi and Carla B. Green | Aug 1, 2022 | 4 min read
Fasting, eating only at certain times of day, and restricting overall calorie intake can collectively contribute to lifespan extensions in animals. Could the same hold true in humans?
Coupling a diet low in calories, sugar, and protein with existing cancer drugs treats triple-negative breast cancer in mice, and low blood glucose is associated with better cancer outcomes in human patients.
Even in mice with a busted circadian clock and an unhealthy diet, carefully timed feeding overcomes the rodents’ predispositions for metabolic diseases.
Maintaining dynamic connections among the body’s mitochondria is required for the health and life-extending benefits of low-calorie diets for nematodes.
Regularly taking breaks from eating—for hours or days—can trigger changes both expected, such as in metabolic dynamics and inflammation, and surprising, as in immune system function and cancer progression.
Starvation paired with cancer drugs slowed or stopped unchecked cell growth in yeast and mouse models of cancer, outpacing or matching the isolated effects of chemo.