Research

Hormonal

Caloric restriction (CR) extends lifespan and delays aging-related diseases in mammals by reversing age-associated aberrant DNA methylation patterns and activating SIRT1-mediated histone deacetylation.

Caloric restriction, defined as reducing total calorie intake by 25-60% while ensuring all essential nutrients are consumed, is the most effective known environmental intervention for extending lifespan in animal models. It works by triggering epigenetic changes, specifically reversing age-related DNA methylation errors and activating SIRT1, which improves genomic stability and delays disease onset. While direct long-term human lifespan data is lacking, short-term human studies show CR improves metabolic markers like glucose homeostasis and blood pressure.

ModerateSupportsMEDIUM confidence
Caloric restriction (CR) is by far the most effective environmental manipulation that can extend maximum lifespan in many different species... CR is speculated to exert its aging-delaying effect through its capacity to increase genomic stability. Reversal of aberrant DNA methylation during aging is believed to be the most effective mechanism for CR to maintain chromatin function and subsequently influence aging processes.
Yuanyuan Li et al. · BMC Medicine · 2011

Why this rating

The paper is a review of animal models (rodents, yeast, flies) and in vitro studies; human data is limited to short-term metabolic markers and observational associations, not long-term lifespan trials.

Source

Epigenetic regulation of caloric restriction in aging

Yuanyuan Li et al. · BMC Medicine · 2011

DOI 10.1186/1741-7015-9-98

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DOI resolved against Crossref · corpus check 2026-06-10

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