If you’ve adhered to the Parrillo Nutrition Program for any length of time, you

know that it is antifat. But did you know that it is anti-aging as well? That’s right. Some recent—and very intriguing research—points to an anti-aging effect of certain nutritional practices—practices incorporated in our approach to nutrition.

I’ll outline those approaches here, along with the supporting data. Parrillo nutrition is rich in antioxidants. Antioxidants are nutrients found in foods and supplements that protect the body from the onslaught of “free radicals.” Chemically, a free radical is a molecule that is missing a part of itself—one of its two orbiting electrons. To regain stability, the free radical seizes an electron from other molecules or ditches its unpaired one. In the process, the free radical causes molecular damage by boring through cell walls and making it easy for bacteria, viruses, and other disease-causing agents to slip in and do often-irreversible harm to tissues. Free radical damage has been implicated in aging, as well as in diseases such as cancer and heart disease. Fortunately, free radicals aren’t allowed to do their bad deeds without being policed.

They’re apprehended by the antioxidant nutrients, which include vitamins A, C, E, beta-carotene, and certain minerals and enzymes. These nutrients simply donate an electron to a free radical but without changing into a radical itself. This action “neutralizes,” or stops the dangerous multiplication of still more free radicals. Supplementing with antioxidant nutrients has been found in research to help protect the body against age-related diseases. In a recent study, scientists measured levels of vitamin A, C, E, and carotenoids (beneficial nutrients found in yellow vegetables), as well as the activity of certain free radical-fighting enzymes in three groups: healthy elderly subjects aged 80 to 99; elderly subjects aged 60 to 79; and adults younger than 60 years old. Attention was focused on the oldest group, where scientists discovered that the healthiest of the bunch had the highest levels of vitamins A and E.

The scientists noted that these high levels “seem to be important in guaranteeing their extreme longevity.”1 You get vitamins A and E by eating a diet rich in vegetables and whole grains. Vitamin A, in particular, is found in yellow and orange foods, such as yams—a bodybuilding staple. Nutritionists feel that our diets don’t supply all the vitamin E needed for good health. Thus, supplementation of vitamin E is recommended. By following the Parrillo Nutrition Program and supplementing with the Parrillo Essential Vitamin Formula and the Parrillo Mineral- Electrolyte Formula you supply your body with the antioxidant vitamins and minerals it needs for youthful good health. Parrillo nutrition is rich in protein. With advancing age, we tend to lose muscle. Muscle depletion contributes to the loss of “functional capacity.” What this means, essentially, is that it becomes difficult to move around, get in and out of a chair, and do any type of normal daily activity because our muscles don’t work well. The decline of muscle strength and function seen in advancing age can be thwarted with a consistent program of weight training. But simply lifting weights isn’t enough.

The body needs to be fed with ample protein as part of an anti-aging program. This is because protein has a number of functions in the body: It’s involved in the growth, maintenance, and repair of cells; it helps create hemoglobin, which carries oxygen to cells; it’s required for the formation of antibodies to ward off disease and infection; and it helps produce enzymes and hormones for the regulation of body processes. Without enough protein in your diet, your body cannot properly support growth and repair or drive your metabolism for musclebuilding. Anyone who is active has higher requirements for protein than the average person. Scientists have only recently discovered that elderly exercisers need twice as much protein as originally recommended.

They now say that the dietary protein requirements of strength-training seniors is 1.25 grams of protein per kilogram of body weight daily.2 That’s slightly less than I recommend for hardtraining bodybuilders. However, at least science is catching up with the bodybuilding and strengthtraining philosophies that have proven to be so beneficial to good health! On the Parrillo Nutrition Program, we recommend that each day you should eat at least 1.25 to 1.5 grams of protein per pound of body weight. At least one gram of protein per pound of your body weight should come from complete protein sources such as lean white meat poultry, fish, egg whites, or protein powders such as Hi- Protein Powder, Optimized Whey Protein, Parrillo 50-50 or any of our Parrillo Supplement Bars. The bottom line here is: Weighttraining is an anti-aging activity, but you must feed your body with adequate protein to maximize the results of your physical effort. Parrillo nutrition avoids fructose.

For years, I have warned against the consumption of fructose, a simple sugar found in fruits. In addition, fructose is the major constituent of “high fructose corn syrup,” a refined version of fructose made from corn and found in many processed foods. Scientific research has found that high fructose corn syrup raises blood levels of dangerous cholesterol and triglycerides (fats in the blood and body tissues).3 Like other simple sugars, fructose is easily converted into fat in the body—which is why I recommend avoiding it if you want to get lean and muscular.

Increasingly, people are eating a lot of fructose and the foods that contain it. Consider this: Our per capita consumption of fructose, including high fructose corn syrup, accounts for more than 10 percent of total caloric intake. It’s no wonder overweight-related illnesses like heart disease and diabetes are on the rise. That’s simply too much sugar for the human body to handle!4 Now get this: Fructose is now believed to accelerate aging! Scientific experiments over the years have shown that overconsumption or faulty usage of simple sugars in the body leads to “glucosan.” This is a process by which glucose molecules attach themselves to proteins. This starts a reaction that causes the proteins in cell membranes to “cross-link,” an undesirable process in which protein molecules become chemically bound to each other. Cross-linking leads to skin wrinkling, hardened arteries, loss of nerve function, cloudy eye lenses, and kidney inefficiency.

Cross-links steadily increase with age. But here’s something that should really make you take notice: Scientists who study cross-linking believe that fructose is a more potent glycating agent than other sugars—perhaps 10 times as more potent. What this means is that fructose appears to be a super-accelerator of

aging!5 I tell you this as yet another reason why you should limit or avoid fructose-containing foods if you want to maximize your body composition and health, plus possibly fight the forces of aging. A red flag: please start reading labels of products you buy, including sports nutrition products. Many of these are absolutely loaded with fructose and/or high-fructose corn syrup. At Parrillo Performance, we’ve spent more than 25 years developing products without fatforming ingredients. If you want to get lean and stay that way, you must avoid simple sugars (including fructose) and processed foods. You’ll be amazed at the results you can achieve by following this simple nutritional principle. To conclude, your goal should be not only to get lean, but also to stay healthy, active, and youthful for as long as you can. I hope you see that the nutritional strategy set forth by our program is one that just may actually decelerate the aging process.

Parrillo Performance
(800) 344-3404 

References

1Mecocci, P., et al. 2000. Plasma antioxidants and longevity: a study on health centenarians. Free Radical Biology and Medicine 28: 1243-1248.

2Campbell, W.W. 1994. Increased protein requirements in elderly people: new data and retrospective assessments. American Journal of Clinical Nutrition 60: 501-509.

3Henry, R. R. et. al. 1991. Current issues in fructose metabolism. Annual Review of Nutrition 11: 21-39.

4Editor. 1992. Metabolic effects of fructose. Nutrition Research Newsletter 11: 51-52. 5Boaz, L. 1998. Long-term fructose consumption accelerates glycation and several age-related variables in male rats. Journal of Nutrition 128: 1442-1449.

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