Scientists endorse various therapies, practices -- some proven, some not

It's one thing to be spending your day studying the scientific importance of diet and exercise, but what happens after you leave the lab and go home?

Genetics scientist Gordon Lithgow at the Buck Institute, the Novato research center that studies the secrets of aging and why aging causes diseases, asked a group of young and middle-aged scientists that question for a recent panel on healthy aging.

"I wanted to talk to the younger scientists, the ones who are doing the experiments, and see what they were doing personally to help themselves as they aged," said Lithgow who runs a lab studying aging, longevity and stress.

Ranging in age from 30 to 50, the scientists endorse a variety of foods and practices ranging from blueberries to meditation. Some of their favorite therapies and practices come with scientific proof, some not.

Here are their approaches to aging well, based on what they reported at the panel discussion and follow-up interviews.

Bio-chemist Casey Quinlan, who specializes in free radical biology, believes it's important to "eat the rainbow," which means choosing foods with "lots of color. These are the ones that contain anti-oxidants."

She also prefers eating the real thing instead of a supplement. "Carrots are better than taking bio-kerotene."

Quinlan, 32, said she is optimistic the "observant American" is aware of the mounting evidence in support of healthy lifestyle choices, although she said that's complicated by "the ever shifting definition of health. In the last 30 years we have watched eggs, butter and meat all move from &‘healthy' to &‘unhealthy' and back to &‘healthy' again."

She recommends the Web site whfoods.com for "a layman's overview of the scientific research that supports a diet rich in a variety of fruits and vegetables."

Lithgow agreed that for the average person, it is challenging to figure out what anti-aging claims have real science attached and what is baseless hype.

"In the field of aging you see some very nice, solid, hard science which is very exciting and then a cloud of pseudo-science, and most of it is very dodgy. For example, if you look up "anti-aging pills" on the Internet, I'd say that 99 percent of what you bring up is not grounded in science."

As part of his own anti-aging routine, Lithgow, 46, hikes with his young son and plays golf on a hilly course and "never with a cart." He also said that contrary to a lifelong prejudice, he is becoming more intrigued by supplements. Namely, turmeric and blueberry extract.

"I've always considered health food stores dangerous places. They're unregulated. But I have seen experiments in my own lab to indicate there could be benefits to dietary supplements."

Vidhya Krishnan, does computational predictions connected with genetic disease, spending most of her time in front of a computer. The 34-year-old said she learned about the importance of healthy living from her mother and focuses on what she calls "food as medicine."

"What you eat matters less than the amount," she said. For her that means eating a lot of nuts and fruits and focusing on foods that are anti-oxidants, including berries. She's recently added more turmeric to her diet. Turmeric is a spice used in curry and contains curcumin, a chemical which Krishnan has learned from research, is at least effective in one species, having been shown to "extend the lifespan of earthworms."

She also makes sure she drinks eight to 12 glasses of water a day. And lately, she has been exploring acupressure along with yoga and herbal medicines.

"I like to stay open and try complementary medicines. They either work or don't work with no side effects."

Ram Rao,who studied in India, has done research in biochemistry, cell biology and neuroscience.

He said "chronic emotional stress triggers early aging, heart disease and early death" and one of the best ways to deal with stress is meditation.

Rao, 46, practices meditation and yoga breathing and also teaches meditation in a class at the Buck. He considers meditation the "cheapest and simplest recourse to a healthy body and mind." Because, he said, it "slows down cellular aging, reduces emotional stress and chronic pain, lowers blood pressure, increases cognitive function and improves post traumatic stress."

Rao does allow that some stress is positive. "Small amounts of stress may trigger the defense system of the body into preparedness to combat further stress. For example, anticipating a wedding or birth, the fear of a good horror film, betting on a winning team, the feeling before an important job presentation or test. These kinds of stresses may give us the extra energy to perform our best and at higher levels."