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Free radical theory of aging: Nutritional implications

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Abstract

Life expectancy at birth, now about 72 years, is slowly approaching a plateau value of 74–75 years. Further increases in life expectancy may be achieved by a nutritional approach based on the possibility that the free radical reactions going on continuously in biological systems contribute to the degradation of these systems. Growing evidence indicates that random free radical reactions are a major factor in the breakdown of such systems, suggesting that the aging process may be simply the sum of these everpresent deleterious reactions throughout the cells and tissues and that longevity is a reflection of the ability to cope with such reactions. Dietary changes based on this possibility have been shown to: 1) increase the life span of mice, rats, fruit flies and nematodes, 2) inhibit the development of cancer, at least of some forms, 3) slow formation of amyloid, and 4) enhance immune responses. The available data strongly supports the possibility that such dietary changes also have a beneficial effect on the central nervous and cardiovascular systems.

Formulation of human diets, adequate in essential nutrients but designed to minimize random free radical reactions in the body, may reasonably be expected to add five to ten or more years of healthy, productive life to the life span of the average person.

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  1. Departments of Medicine and Biochemistry, University of Nebraska, College of Medicine, Omaha, Nebraska, 68105

    Denham Harman

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  1. Denham Harman
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This is the second paper of the mini-symposium on nutrition and aging organized by Charles H. Barrows, Jr., and presented on Thursday, September 29, 1977 as part of the 7th Annual Meeting of the American Aging Association in New York City.

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Harman, D. Free radical theory of aging: Nutritional implications. AGE 1, 145–152 (1978). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF02432188

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