
Longevity
A six-year study by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention found three behaviors exerted enormous impact on longevity: not currently smoking, consuming a healthier diet, and moderately exercising at least 21 minutes a day. People with all three behaviors reduced their chances of dying in that time by 82 percent.
A similar study measured how much vitamin C subjects had in their bloodstreams, as vitamin C level was considered a good biomarker of plant food intake (and hence was used as a proxy for a healthy diet). The drop in mortality risk among those with healthier habits was equivalent to being 14 years younger.
The mitochondrial theory of aging suggests that free radical damage to our cells’ power source (mitochondria) leads to a loss of cellular energy and function over time. According to the theory, the resulting cellular damage is what essentially causes aging. Aging and disease have been thought of as the oxidation of the body, but eating antioxidant-rich foods may slow down this oxidant process. On average, plant foods may contain 64 times more antioxidants than animal foods. Including a variety of fruits, vegetables, herbs, and spices each meal continuously floods our body with antioxidants to help ward off stroke and other age-related diseases, promoting longevity.
Consuming fruits and veggies, and not smoking, has also been associated with longer protective telomeres, the caps on the tips of our chromosomes that keep DNA from unraveling. Each time our cells divide, a bit of that cap is lost. Telomeres can start shortening as soon as we’re born, and when they’re gone, we’re gone. The food we eat may impact how fast we lose our telomeres: Consumption of refined grains, soda, meat, and dairy has been linked to shortened telomeres, while fruit, vegetable, and other antioxidant-rich plant food intake has been associated with longer ones.
The information on this page has been compiled from Dr. Greger’s research. Sources for each video listed can be found by going to the video’s page and clicking on the Sources Cited tab. References may also be found at the back of his books.
Popular Videos for Longevity


How to Boost FGF21 with Diet for Longevity
Fasting and exercise can boost the longevity hormone FGF21, but what can we eat—or avoid...
How to Increase Your Life Expectancy 12 to 14 Years
What can physicians do to promote healthy, life-extending, lifestyle changes?
Does Intermittent Fasting Increase Human Life Expectancy?
Alternate-day modified fasting is put to the test for lifespan extension.
The Benefits of Calorie Restriction for Longevity
Though a bane for dieters, a slower metabolism may actually be a good thing.
Increased Lifespan from Beans
The intake of legumes—beans, chickpeas, split peas, and lentils—may be the single most important dietary...
Caloric Restriction vs. Animal-Protein Restriction
The lifespan extension associated with dietary restriction may be due less to a reduction in...
The Okinawa Diet: Living to 100
What would happen if you centered your diet around vegetables, the most nutrient-dense food group?
How to Prevent High Blood Pressure with Diet
High blood pressure, the #1 killer risk factor in the world, may be eliminated with...
Telomeres: Cap It All Off with Diet
Is the reversal of cellular aging Dr. Dean Ornish demonstrated with lifestyle changes due to...
Survival of the Firmest: Erectile Dysfunction and Death
Because penile arteries are only about half the size of the coronary arteries in the...
Longer Life Within Walking Distance
Researchers find exercise often works just as well as drugs for the treatment of heart...
Turning the Clock Back 14 Years
Four simple health behaviors may cut our risk of chronic disease by nearly 80%, potentially...
How to Slow Brain Aging by Two Years
The consumption of blueberries and strawberries is associated with delayed cognitive aging by as much...
Methionine Restriction as a Life-Extension Strategy
Plant-based diets may prove to be a useful nutrition strategy in both cancer growth control...
Do Flexitarians Live Longer?
Does just reducing one’s intake of meat, dairy, and eggs significantly reduce mortality?
Fruits, Veggies, and Longevity: How Many Minutes Per Mouthful?
The first study to gauge how much longer we live based on the number of...
How to Counter the Inflammation of Aging
What can we eat to combat “inflamm-aging,” the chronic low-grade inflammation that accompanies the aging...All Videos for Longevity
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The Negative Effects and Benefits of Plant-Based Diets
What are the pros and cons of plant-based eating?
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Plant-Based Diet for Treating and Reversing Stage 3 Kidney Disease
I share a touching story of the power of plant-based eating for chronic kidney failure.
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Dietary Guidelines: “Eat as Little Dietary Cholesterol as Possible”
Why do the official federal Dietary Guidelines for Americans recommend limiting the intake of dietary cholesterol (found mostly in eggs) as much as possible?
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The Harms Associated with Eating More Southern-Style Food
Diet appears to mediate the majority of the racial health gap.
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Diet and Lifestyle for Cancer Prevention and Survival
What kind of diet should cancer patients eat?
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The Purported Benefits of Vitamin K2: Should You Take Supplements?
Our body can make vitamin K2 from the K1 in green leafy vegetables.
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How to Avoid the Boomerang Effect of Remedy Messaging
How can mandating healthy eating messaging on fast-food ads ironically make things worse?
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The Potential Harm in Unnecessary Gluten-Free Diets
How might we prevent the inflammation from gluten-free diets?
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Is Allulose a Healthy Sweetener?
Are rare sugars like allulose a healthy alternative for traditional sweeteners?
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The Best Diet for Healthy Aging
Swapping just 1 percent of plant protein in place of animal protein was associated with significantly less age-related deficit accumulation.