More protein makes for longer youthspan... up to a point

Welcome to Long Youthspan, the Conan O'Brien Show of longevity newsletters

I'm your host, the Youthspan Hound. I've been working like a dog to put together a great lineup for you today, starring recent science papers, contentious diet topics, and two sheep, one of whom was an international celebrity.

Are you ready ? Then let's get going.

More protein makes for longer youthspan... up to a point

What's the news: Higher protein intake is linked to better physical performance in older adults. Up to a point.

Why should we believe it: I hounded down this news in a meta-study, which was published late in 2022. This meta-study looked at the results of 22 separate studies, totaling 11,332 people. Key results:

• For subjects aged 75, more protein was linked to faster walking speed, greater leg and hand grip strength, better balance

• For subjects aged 85, more protein was no longer linked to faster walking strength or hand grip strength

What does this mean? It could be that protein is magically good for you up to age 75... but its magic powers wear off by the time you reach 85. But really, this meta-study is interesting because of what it did not find.

Fit or long-lived? In the mainstream, protein has become unquestionably good, thanks to decades of popular paleo and keto diets. But in longevity circles, there is evidence that protein actually contributes to aging and aging-related diseases.

And that's why many longevity-conscious folks are restricting protein. Which brings us back to the current meta-study.

What was missing: While the study didn't find amazing support in favor of protein, what was more interesting was that it didn't find evidence against protein among the aging crowd, at least as shown by tests of physical performance.

So what you can do now? This study was music to your Youthspan Hound's ears, since protein makes up a fair part of my diet. And according to this study, protein still seems to be good for you — in moderation, up to a point, even for long youthspan. 

The fact is, in spite of decades of research, we still don't have good answers about the basics of healthy nutrition. More protein? Less protein? There's a lot of dogma in the field of nutrition, and not a lot of common sense. Which brings me to the offer I dug up for you today. Read on.

Advanced fat loss strategies, which also double as long youthspan strategies

My offer for you today is a free webinar, Advanced Fat Loss Strategies.

This webinar is put together by Ari Whitten, somebody I've endorsed repeatedly inside Long Youthspan. I've endorsed Ari repeatedly because his approach is similar to mine — a hound-like search for science-based, reasonable, practical advice.

In a world where lots of experts are ready to offer you dogmatic diets that sounds sexy but simply doesn't work for most people, Ari offers sensible, proven, usable ideas.

Spoiler alert: Ari's advanced fat loss strategies also double as Long Youthspan diet strategies. At least that's what your Youthspan Hound believes, based on everything I've dug up so far about the science of longevity diets. In case you're interested:

Click here for the free Advanced Fat Loss Strategies webinar

Thanks for reading, and see you tomorrow

Since today's issue of Long Youthspan touched on sheep, diet, and unhealthy weight, let me leave you with a before-and-after picture of Chris the Sheep.

Chris had put on an unhealthy amount of weight — not by overeating, but by escaping and not being sheared for 6 years. (I don't know why they didn't put a hound on Chris's trail — I would have found him in 15 minutes.)

By the time Chris was found again, he had a fleece that weighed 40 kg (89 lbs.) and he could barely move. Once sheared of his excess weight, Chris lived out a happy and pleasant and natural life.

Wouldn't it be nice if dropping excess weight were as easy for humans as it was for Chris? If you're longing for human weight-loss shears, read tomorrow's issue of Long Youthspan.

I'll tell you about some late-breaking science I've dug up for you on the topic of diet and weight loss — and I'll give you one specific but reliable way to lose weight for the long term.