BBC1 have recently (April 2016) run a two part programme called “How to stay young”. The presenters have been 71 year old Angela Rippon and 36 year old Chris Van Tulleken – one of the famous twins who keeps popping up on our television sets.
Programme one explored the body and programme two explored the mind. I confess to not having watched either of them in full. These programmes are getting very formulaic and they usually get something nutritional wrong, which is not good for my own health.
The part that did attract my interest was about 22 minutes into episode one when Chris jetted off to California. First he showed footage of downtown LA and shared the incredible statistic that “20% of meals eaten in the US are consumed in cars”. Then he headed 60 miles east of LA to a town in the more mountainous area of California: Loma Linda. Loma Linda translates to “beautiful hill”.
Chris explained his reason for visiting Loma Linda as “people here live 10 years longer than the average Californian and scientists suspect it’s largely to do with what they eat.” Chris went to meet one of the town’s oldest residents – centenarian Dr Ellsworth Wareham. Ellsworth believes his health and longevity is due to his being vegan, as he explains in this article...
