The evidence you site doesn't seem to me to provide strong support for
rejecting caloric restriction for human life extension. Two reasons:
(1) Simply comparing BMI (Body Mass Index?) to death rate can be
misleading. There are millions of people who die of cancer and other
wasting diseases who lose weight and die with a lower BMI. It doesn't seem
like the study allowed for that.
(2) Apparently smoking cigarettes reduces appetite. I would expect smokers,
especially heavy smokers, to have a lowe BMI and to die earlier, on
average, of heart disease, cancer, and other diseases.
(3) I suspect that most or many of those who have a low BMI and who don't
live as long, may not have maintained the high nutrition diet specified by
caloric restriction advocates. Low calorie intake with low nutrient intake
is not claimed to extended life.
Thoughts?
Max
Max More, Ph.D.
more@extropy.org
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