Fasting & Nutrition Protocols for Longevity & Disease Prevention w/ Valter Longo | Rich Roll Podcast

38 thoughts on “Fasting & Nutrition Protocols for Longevity & Disease Prevention w/ Valter Longo | Rich Roll Podcast”

1. Love Longo! He is the reason why I became plant based, and as a byproduct when living a healthy lifestyle all my symptoms of pancolitis are long gone. Eternally grateful!

2. good grief Rich Roll is just so awesome!!!!! Love the content, week after week, endless insights!!!

3. YES!!!!!!!!!! I have been waiting for this one!!!! I read BOTH of their books (Longevity Diet & Finding Ultra) while in treatment. Absolutely took my life into the atmosphere! Thank you both deeply

4. Very interesting, and optimistic in an evidence based way, applicable at the grassroots. I’ve already shared it with someone who is exploring fasting and learning more about the science to apply to her health and that of her family.

5. Same here. What luck.

6. Loved this discussion. I eat a healthy diet, 75% plant based, but include fish & poultry. I’ve never tries a true fast and this has certainly inspired me to do this. And to adopt this diet, looking forward to sharing this with my family, clients..thanks again:))

7. “confusion is definitely our product” well said Rich and so true…we must break this paradigm. Hands down to Dr Longo and his team….wishing this becomes FDA approved. Can you imagine a world of healthy people???

8. Simon Hill has a couple great podcasts on fasting. I actually had been doing IF for the last two years (16/8 split) only to find out that I probably shouldn’t since I have PCOS. I actually feel a lot better keeping it down to 12 hours of fasting per day and have lost weight since making the change.

9. I love Longo, but I am torn with all the steps and calculations. I will follow his advice on his recommendation of 5 days of moderate fasting (I think Monthly will be best for me) and low protein and sugar of course, but more the way the Blue Zones do it. Simple and easy. Beans and veggies and some days of just eating less… Great podcast!

10. Excellent podcast Rich. Thanks for the goldmine of information and excellent questions asked 👍

11. He truly is.

12. I did actually fast 42-48 hrs/weekly for 3 years. it stabilized my weight, cleared my head and I felt amazing. It requires serious discipline but it’s so worth it! I fell off the wagon during covid combined with a few other life stressors but i’m working my way back to that practice!

13. I have to say Rich, you are one of the best podcaster/interviewers I’ve seen. No one else has the patience to let people speak. When you do comment it’s usually to summarise or expand, not just give your opinion. It’s so rare to see. Thanks for the great quality content, it’s so appreciated.

14. This has to be one of my favorite episodes, if not THE. You can tell how much he loves and cares about people, through the way he simplifies his research to where anyone can understand it. 👏🏽👏🏽

15. I listened to this interview yesterday and I’m listening to it again. This is one of the most influential guests ever. My only disagreement is that I believe in eating only a plant based vegan diet.

16. I love this interview so much. Thank you for doing this, Rich! And thank you for the work that you do, Valter. One slightly less confused dietitian here 😂

17. I appreciate how he says to taylor this diet to your needs! I have celiac disease, and just naturally am very lean so fasting seems tricky. I eat completely whole plant foods without salt or oil and exercise regularly. Thanks again, guys! Stay well 🙂

18. I interviewed a nutritionist and executive chef from a renowned addictions treatment center. Shocking how much impact diet can have on the success of someone trying to be free of their addiction.

19. @Bladerunner2043 oh no, longo actually said we are fuelled by sugar. omg, did you cry inside a little bit

20. Great topic, too!
    Some of the many benefits of fasting and a lower carb whole food diet on the immune system, blood pressure, blood sugar and anti-aging, all backed up by clinical data:
    Thymus stem cells are regenerated, which suppresses aging and renews the immune system.
    Fasting stimulates phagocytosis, the ingestion of bacteria and viruses by the immune system.
    Blood pressure is quickly and dramatically lowered, which is very important for a good outcome with the current pandemic.
    Fasting increases nitric oxide, which has manifold postive effects like reducing arterial plaque.
    Weight loss from fasting only loses10% lean tissue and 90% fat compared to the typical 25% lean tissue and 75% fat lost when calorically restricting for long periods.
    Blood clotting is reduced and blood clots and arterial plaque are reabsorbed into the body.
    Vitamin D plasma levels are increased, and vitamin D in turn increases autophagy!
    Blood sugar and insulin are lowered, allowing white blood cells to move more freely throughout the body and do their job. Ideal blood sugar is around 80. Some viruses activate glycolosis (the release of sugar in the body) and clinically it has been shown that decreasing glucose metabolism in the body weakens the influenza virus.

    Fasts of several days will not affect short term female fertility and may increase long term fertility especially in women with PCOS.

    It’s absolutely fine for cortisol to be high while fasting, because it produces sugar from fat instead of lean tissue https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=giEDadzoErs

    Does the body prefernetially prefer glucose as a fuel? No, it never uses mainly glucose for fuel and using glucose for fuel is very biochemically damaging! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Nf1jwMbvNxw

    The hormone Leptin is an immunomodulator that keeps the body from attacking itself and obesity causes leptin resistance. Fasting very quickly reduces leptin resistance and leptin levels and one day of fasting can cut your leptin levels in half and gets your immune system working properly again!

    When you move out of MTOR your body shuts down the building blocks of the cell which are used to produce organelles and proteins. This means the mechanisms needed by viruses to replicate are by and large unavailable when you are in a deeply fasted state.

    It stimulates the AMPK complex and activates autophagy. Autophagy (literally self eating) will cause cells to recycle foreign matter such as viruses and kill cancerous and senescent cells. AMPK does many helpful things in the body including activating the body’s antioxidant defenses.

    Does fasting burn muscle? In most cases no! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=teQIaU6wp2o

    Fasting can make you gain muscle faster: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5RM8GRzsIIg

    Deep ketosis virtually eliminates chronic inflammation in the body. This can offset the life threatening symptoms of viral pneumonia which effectively kills you through inflammation. This also creates BHB ketones in your body, which also help your immune system and anti-oxidative system, especially in the brain. Ketones also provide an additional energy source during infection, which is critical when trying to fight off a bug. In fact you can have as much as three times the total energy available in your blood when you are in deep ketosis, or even more.

    It increases mitochondrial function and repairs mitichondrial DNA, leading to improved ATP production and oxygen efficiency and thereby making cells better able to fight off infection. Increased mitochondrial function also has the added benefit of increasing your metabolism and cancer prevention!

    Fasts from 36-96 h actually INCREASE metabolic rate! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BeC_gIR2Z14&t=453s

    Your body releases interferon which is also triggered by the body during viral attacks to shut down the replication ability of the surrounding cells and stop infections.

    After 72 hours or more fasted, your body actually recycles large numbers of immune bodies and creates new ones, rejuvenating your entire system.

    When you fast, this stimulates apoptosis in senescent or genetically damaged cells. This kills these cells off completely. Senescent cells are responsible for the effects of aging and are the root cause of the development of cancer. If it were possible to destroy them all it would completely stop aging and cancer. That is not possible but fasting can help limit these effects by killing off many of the affected cells and limiting the future effects of aging.

    Fasting also releases BDNF and NGF in the blood which stimulates new nerve and brain cell growth, helping a great deal with diseases like MS, peripheral neuropathy and Alzheimers.

    In fact, the biochemical regulator of BDNF production is beta-hydroxybutyrate, which is the same ketone the body produces to nourish the brain while fasting.

    Autophagy induced by fasting even helps hair regrow.

    What breaks a fast? https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7aRLsCpxy3o&t=2s

    Dieters losing weight through intermittent fasting show greater reduction in waist size and increase in insulin sensitivity for the same weight lost and alternate day fasters were shown to lose fat while gaining muscle at the same time over a six month period.

    Does fasting lower testosterone? No, it raises it and builds muscle!
    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fJUDucBWv4s&t=319s

    Fasting has been shown to increase bone marrow volume by 10% and levels of carnosine in the body in as little as a few weeks.

    Fasting also increases telomere length, negating some of the effects of aging at a cellular level.

    Eating one meal a day can bring most of these benefits to a lesser degree, and adding a few entire days off from eating per week will have even more effect especially when starting to feel poorly.

    Exogenous ketones can aid with fasting, making it easier in healthy people and allowing some people with specific issues to fast in spite of them without worrying as much about hypoglycemia.

    Children, pregnant or nursing women should not fast for periods longer than 16 hours. People with pancreatic tumors or certain forms of hypoglycemia generally cannot fast at all. Type 1 diabetics can also fast but it is more complicated and should be approached with caution as it could lead to ketoacidosis. Those with Addison’s disease may also be unable to fast without liberal use of exogenous ketones, depending on severity. If you experience extreme symptoms of some kind, especially dizziness then simply break the fast and seek advice.

    Resources:
    https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/7714088/
    https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/6859089/
    https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/23876457
    https://repository.upenn.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1537&context=edissertations
    https://www.cell.com/cell/fulltext/S0092-8674(19)30849-9
    https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/25686106
    https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/24905167
    https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/10859646
    http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0005272806000223
    https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC1413655/
    https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2815756/
    http://www.cell.com/cell-metabolism/abstract/S1550-4131(15)00224-7
    https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/gene/25712
    https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC1779438/
    https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/10232622
    https://academic.oup.com/ajcn/article/81/1/69/4607679
    https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3017674/
    https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1931312809002832
    https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5895342/
    https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6526871/
    https://www.nejm.org/doi/full/10.1056/NEJMc2001176
    https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/23408502/
    https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/27569118/
    https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/21410865/
    https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6407435/
    https://www.arcjournals.org/pdfs/ijrsb/v3-i11/7.pdf
    https://www.amjmedsci.org/article/S0002-9629%2815%2900027-0/fulltext
    https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/20921964/
    https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6141719/
    https://faseb.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1096/fasebj.2019.33.1_supplement.819.10
    https://www.biorxiv.org/node/93305.full
    https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/25909219/

    https://clinical.diabetesjournals.org/content/36/3/217
    https://europepmc.org/article/MED/22402737?javascript_support=no
    https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1111/j.1365-2265.2005.02288.x
    https://www.collective-evolution.com/2017/05/16/study-shows-how-fasting-for-3-days-can-regenerate-your-entire-immune-system/
    https://www.health.harvard.edu/heart-health/abundance-of-fructose-not-good-for-the-liver-heart
    https://holistickenko.com/vitamin-d-kidney-liver-disease/

    https://n.neurology.org/content/88/16_Supplement/P3.090

    This list compiled over months of research by the user known as Pottenger’s Human on youtube but feel free to copy and paste this anywhere you like, no accreditation needed!

    My channel which will always contain an updated list of fasting benefits:
    https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCMC_ZrmTUTGdQiIwJjZq1rg

    I have playlists on fasting and health and wellness. I also make a little commentary comment on health and fitness as well.

    When I have community posts available I will make a community post with this list that has a permanent link but which will remain editable and keep a fresh copy there at all times!

21. @RILEY CLARKE What an ignorant comment omg. Most people I know take vitamin supplements (carnivores, vegans, vegetarians). Im vegetarian and absolutely healthy. I take no supplements. Btw you sound so frustrated and sad.

22. @Gino Dumitru lol, sure

23. @The V Countdown You don’t know why I switched to carnivor after 6 years of veganism.
    I was diagnosed with carcinoid tumor on my trachea and I switched from SAD to vegan overnight thinking I will shrink that tumor with this diet 6 years later nothing changed.
    I wanna give a try to see if anything change after 4 months I will test my self again to see the results.
    I don’t bash the plant base I was very confortabil but not the results that I was hoping for.
    It’s just a try out to see the difference

24. Thanks for this Rich! Kudos to your style. I have seen countless interviews with Valter since I read of his work 4-5 years ago and your right up there with the best! As for Valter, he is really a visionary and national treasure! 15 years ago he was ignored and his work ridiculed; 5 years ago much of the medical community, including KOL’s still viewed him as a quack. Now… guess what ? The data is so overwhelming those same people are eating ( pun intended) their words!!! I have done a half dozen FMDs personally with remarkable results. Thanks to you both!!!

25. So, 5 days is good, 16 hr is bad? I can’t reconcile that process. Is the 5 day fast only good if you’re doing his FMD? Not true five day fast?

    What’s about all the other conflicting reports/data saying that regular fasting is good?

    He said at the beginning keeping insulin down is good for longevity, but earing carbs and more often will keep more insulin in your blood, won’t it?

    #confused

26. @GS4Clagg I just go with my gut. I began fasting in the mid-1990’s. I had lost 45 pounds in 3 months, and entered a mystical state for over a decade. And what I found happened in this mystical state was a desire to ritualize everything. And I developed this ritual of fasting for 24 hours prior to both Thanksgiving meal, and Christmas meal. The idea just emerged — I didn’t read about it in a book, or hear from anyone that it was good for me. I just felt the desire to do so spontaneously emerge within me. I still do 24-hour fasts, and find them very beneficial. They FEEL good. And it’s a good way to exercise discipline. I don’t worry about what some external “authority” tells me I should do.

27. So pumped to hear 12 hrs of fasting is a good amount. Cause that’s all I can last lol. Also pumped to hear that breakfast is good and you shouldnt skip it.

28. I agree one of the few food based guys like this. Most are like listening to a religious program.

29. Best of luck!

30. What I don’t imagine is fasting approved by the FDA, as I have no respect for them.

31. i agree!

32. Fasting 5+ days can actually be fairly easy if one first goes zero carb/carnivore for several days before transitioning to fasting. Gets the body away from carb-induced hunger and past the ‘keto flu’ type of discomfort that can be so difficult. Also, things get easier with practice as one learns what to expect from their body and alleviate fears of the unknown.
    Longo has done important research for sure, but the FMD talk to me seems to be more about selling his product.

33. @Ian Doherty Really helps to work your way up to it with shorter fasts to learn what to expect and learn to trust your body to take care of you without food, also to learn what your susceptibilities are (some people have a greater need for mineral electrolyte supplementation than others, e.g.)

34. @pannellclara 12 hours is not fasting…there is a difference between fasting and being IN a fasted state. Entering the Fasted State. A prolonged absence of food gives our digestive system a chance to rest and do cleanup. It can take many hours after your last meal to complete digestion and enter the fasted state. The time varies between individuals, but 12 hours is often suggested as an estimate

35. 12 hours of fasting is actually time restricted eating, not true fasting.

36. just bought Valter’s book. This is a revolutionary idea and much more applicable to everyday life. 12 hours fast – most of us can do that! Thank you Rich! ps a lot of this sentiment was expressed by Tim Ferris in 4 hour body a few years ago. great to see it reinforced again.

37. Congratulations all round for a fascinating conversation. So much happening in this space – and it’s all super interesting. Curious though about Prof Longo’s reference to long-term presence of Ketone Bodies NOT being necessarily conducive to longevity (around 30:15 into the conversation). Any evidence at all on this???

38. Профессиональный сервисный центр по ремонту бытовой техники с выездом на дом.
    Мы предлагаем: сервис центры бытовой техники москва
    Наши мастера оперативно устранят неисправности вашего устройства в сервисе или с выездом на дом!