Is Calorie Restriction Really Different From Anorexia?
By Kate TaylorPosted Monday, April 23, 2007.
Forget everything you've ever heard about anorexia. It turns out starving yourself is healthy.
So, at least, one might conclude from recent articles (here, here, and here) about calorie restriction, which studies have shown to extend the lives of animals like monkeys and mice and which is now being tested with humans. The mechanism by which calorie restriction slows aging in animals isn't yet understood. But it seems to depend on these basic mechanics: When you eat less than you need, your metabolism slows down. Your heart rate ebbs, your temperature drops. It's an evolutionary response meant to help us survive during famines (and it explains why some dieters have such difficulty losing weight).
As a former anorexic, I've found it strange to hear scientists hail low metabolism—a central feature of that disease—as a sign of health and potential longevity. When I was being treated, my doctors invoked my low metabolism as a catchall for the physical damage I was doing. My low heart rate, amenorrhea (the loss of my period), and the goose bumps I got in 70-degree weather were all signs of illness. So, how can something that is a symptom of disease in one person be a marker of good health in another?
