After reading this new study, you may want to pay closer attention to the expiration dates printed on your food.
A new study from Harvard University concluded that consuming food after its expiration date can lead to a shortened lifespan and premature death. Professor of Medicine at Harvard, Dr. Vadim Gladyshev, set out to gather more information on the causes of aging, and during his research, he determined that the accumulated molecular damage within cells is part of aging itself, and that consuming expired food may be the cause of this damage. Dr. Gladyshev explains, "This damage arises from almost every cellular process, leading to numerous cellular damages that accumulate over time, which undoubtedly affects quality of life and longevity."
To test this theory related to eating expired food, researchers fed different types of spoiled food to yeast, fruit flies, and mice, finding that the old food reduced the lifespan of each sample by 10%. However, when it came to mice, it appeared that old food specifically shortened the lifespan of female mice. Researchers noted that the mice had been on a healthy and natural diet before the study, so there may not have been enough time for the new diets to cause a significant change in their health.
It is worth mentioning that this study was published this month in the scientific journal Science Advances. The authors of the study actually believed that the results would be more serious than they turned out to be, but they were confident they were on the right track. Dr. Gladyshev adds, "This study shows us that age-related changes, which accumulate, are truly harmful, providing insights into the aging process and its effects and causes."
In addition, the scientists acknowledged that food and the cell response in the body is just one part of the complex aging process, but they hope that the new knowledge gained from this study will guide them in the right direction to learn more about this subject.
