Limited Calorie diets make monkeys cranky.

Last updated on January 3, 2023

Supernanny says you always have to give a warning before you put someone in the naughty corner.

limited-calorie diet cartoon with monkey and smiley-faces

Thanksgiving is only 3 days away! So this is your warning: be sure to eat enough at dinner so you aren’t tempted to bite the other family or guests.

It’s cruel and inhumane.

This blog at Sephora says that monkeys (and people on a limited calorie diet look noticeably younger.

But from a beauty perspective, it does what we want every anti-aging product to do–makes you look younger. Check out the picture of Mike (scroll down in the article), a 36 year old who has been following a caloric restriction diet for 6 years. He’s practically emaciated (6 feet tall and 135 lbs) but he looks like he’s 16! This approach, called caloric restriction, involves eating about 30 percent fewer calories than normal while still getting adequate amounts of vitamins, minerals and other nutrients. According to the Times article, aside from direct genetic manipulation, calorie restriction is the only strategy known to extend life consistently in a variety of animal species.

The original article from 2006 is at the Times:

Recently, the effort has begun to bear fruit, producing a steady stream of studies indicating that the rate of aging is plastic, not fixed, and that it can be manipulated.

Earlier this year, researchers studying dietary effects on humans went so far as to claim that calorie restriction may be more effective than exercise at preventing age-related diseases.

I had read this a couple of years ago. But this was interesting:

Earlier this year, four prominent gerontologists, among them Dr. Miller, published a paper calling for the government to spend $3 billion annually in pursuit of a modest goal: delaying the onset of age-related diseases by seven years.

Guess that never happened.

This couple has been eating less for 16 years, and are staying young.

However, ONLY the LA Times reported that the animals they tested were suffering. (Hey, get a real paper, people.)

“They bit people and were more agitated,” he said. In contrast, the mice who ate a normal diet “would just sit around and let you pick them up.”

I assume that monkeys would be much worse, but of course how would anyone know, since they cage them and probably never ever touch them. If you have any pets, you know how anxious they get at feeding time. Will you still give them food THIS time? Will they survive another day? In starvation mode of 30% less food…well, that is just cruel.

Cartoon Caption: Scientists cruelly gave mice, fish, and now monkeys limited-calorie diets – 30% less food. They are healthier, but bite more. (Unfortunately, no smiley-faces survived.)

This cartoon might be confusing, but I prefer to think of it as a little game. ;) It kind of grew organically – first the information, then the monkey holding on to the title board, and for some reason I threw in smiley-faces, one of which has starved, and turned into The Scream! I don’t know why! It just made me laugh!

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