The National Institutes of Health has announced that calorie restriction without malnutrition “can increase longevity and delay the onset of many age-related changes in yeast, worms, flies, and in some but not all strains of mice.” And, “Adult-onset calorie restriction has now been found to have many of the same effects in rhesus monkeys.”
The findings come from a 20-year study supported by the National Institute on Aging, and NIH agency.
Calorie restriction is the reduction of calories by 20 to 30 percent. Proponents say it improves health and lengthens the life span. The NIH is trying to find out if that’s true.
Studies on humans and calorie restriction are underway at three universities including the Washington University School of Medicine. The program, CALERIE, or the Comprehensive Assessment of Long-term Effects of Reducing Intake of Energy. is still recruiting. See if you’re eligible by calling For more information please contact our Study Coordinator, Morgan Schram at 314-747-3182, or by email at calerie@im.wustl.edu.

More on the monkeys from the NIH:
Monkeys in the experimental group started a 30 percent calorie restricted diet as adults between 7 to 14 years old (average life span of rhesus monkeys in captivity is 27 years; maximal life span 40 years).
They experienced three-times fewer age-related diseases compared to a group not on the diet. Researchers found that CR monkeys maintained more lean muscle mass; had better glucose-insulin balance and no incidence of diabetes; had lower incidence of heart disease and certain cancers; and preserved more gray matter in a region of the brain that affects motor function and some higher-level thinking. CR monkeys also appeared to have decreased age-related mortality. At the time of the report, 80 percent of the CR animals survived versus 50 percent of the monkeys not on calorie restriction.