CRON-diet
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2008-06-07T18:17:33Z
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The '''CRON-diet''', '''CR-diet''', '''Longevity diet''', or '''Anti-Aging Plan''' is a [[nutrient]]-rich, [[Very low calorie diet|low calorie diet]] <ref>[http://www.nbc5.com/healthandfitness/14884835/detail.html CRON-diet as a reduced calorie diet]</ref> , developed by Dr. [[Roy Walford]] and [[Brian M. Delaney]]. <ref>[http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m0FKA/is_12_64/ai_94327705 CRON-diet as a life-extension diet]</ref> <ref>[http://www.scientificpsychic.com/health/crondiet.html Roy Walford as architect of CRON-diet]</ref> <ref>[http://calorierestriction.org/Getting_started Brian Delaney as architect of CRON-diet]</ref>, which practices the limiting of dietary energy intake, in the hope that it will improve health and retard [[Senescence|aging]].
== Overview ==
The CRON-diet (Calorie Restriction with Optimal Nutrition <ref>[http://calorierestriction.org/Glossary CRON-description]</ref>), is a diet which has been developed out of research conducted from the [[Biosphere 2]] <ref>Walford, R.L., S.B. Harris, and M.W. Gunion. 1992. Calorically restricted low-fat nutrient-dense diet in Biosphere 2 significantly lowers blood glucose, total leukocyte count, cholesterol, and blood pressure in humans. Proceedings, National Academy of Sciences, USA, V. 89, n. 23: 11533-11537</ref> and data gathered from several decades of research on animals by [[Roy Walford]] <ref>[http://www.scientificpsychic.com/health/crondiet.html CRON-diet based on a long time of research]</ref>. As the name implies, the diet targets life extension through the use of [[calorie restriction]] and the pursuit of fully supplying in the required daily amounts (RDA) of nutrients.
At the moment, together with diets such as the [[Okinawa diet]] and the [[New Longevity diet]], the CRON-diet is one of the most popular diets for life-extension.<ref>[http://www.nbc5.com/healthandfitness/14884835/detail.html CRON-diet one of the most popular diets for life extension]</ref> This popularity may be partly due to the support given by the [[Calorie Restriction Society]], which focuses on the CRON-diet in specific (besides giving general information on calorie restriction).
== The CRON-diet in theory ==
The first step towards undertaking the CRON-diet is determining one's "set-point". The set-point is what your weight naturally would be if you ate your usual, everyday intake. This set-point is different for each of us and is determined through heredity and childhood eating habits. One is expected to remain 10-25% under this set-point to reap the full potential advantage of the diet. <ref>The Anti-Aging Plan: Strategies and Recipes for extending your Healthy years by Lisa and Roy Walford (page 42 to 44)</ref>
A guideline to determining this set-point is measuring your [[body fat content]]; this should be between 6-10% for a male person and between 10-15% for a female person. <ref>The Anti-Aging Plan: Strategies and Recipes for extending your Healthy years by Lisa and Roy Walford (page 19)</ref> Measurement of this body fat content can happen through commonly available, cheap tools as [[Body_fat_percentage#Skinfold_Methods|skinfold test tools]] (the "Fat-O-Meter" is proposed in the Health Plan-book) or certain digital scales. In addition, besides and amalgamation of skinfold measurements, [[densiometry]] and/or [[bioelectrical impedance analysis]] can also be used to help determine your correct set-point. Depending on the current weight and the required (below set-point) weight that needs to be attained, a preliminary diet is prepared and followed.
Next, one should determine the amount of caloric restriction you wish to implement in your regular eating pattern. Generally, 20% is recommended. <ref>The Anti-Aging Plan: Strategies and Recipes for extending your Healthy years by Lisa and Roy Walford (page 19)</ref> The caloric restriction is deducted from the regular amount of calories a person normally consumes a day. As a general number, 1800 calories/day is usually taken <ref>The Anti-Aging Plan: Strategies and Recipes for extending your Healthy years by Lisa and Roy Walford (page 45)</ref>, yet variation to this number is likely, depending on one's [[Basal Metabolic Rate]]. It is noteworthy that although the basal metabolic rate may be determined through certain (computer) [http://www.scientificpsychic.com/health/cron1.html BMR calculating tools], the verifiability of this has been doubted by Dr. Walford.
== The CRON-diet in practice ==
Once the amounts of calories have been determined, the meals and menus are worked out. Although three meals are proposed in "The Anti Aging Plan"-book, variation is possible. More or less meals per day can be embedded in one's schedule through the use of a combination of more calorie-dense (or-lean) foods <ref>The Anti-Aging Plan: Strategies and Recipes for extending your Healthy years by Lisa and Roy Walford (page 294)</ref> and through supplements (pills or certain super-high nutrition (calorie-lean) foods. <ref>The Anti-Aging Plan: Strategies and Recipes for extending your Healthy years by Lisa and Roy Walford (page 86)</ref> These latter super-high nutrition (calorie-lean) foods are described in the 'Anti-Aging Plan'-book as "[[Nutrient super-charger]]s" and include (amongst others) [[kombu]], [[brewers yeast]], [[wheat bran]], [[shiitake|shiitake mushroom]]s, non-fat dry [[milk]], [[soybean]]s and [[tofu]], [[wheat germ]],... The "nutrient super-chargers" are frequently found in meals featured in the CRON-diet and this had been done to boost the meals' nutritional density.<ref>The Anti-Aging Plan: Strategies and Recipes for extending your Healthy years by Lisa and Roy Walford (page 294)</ref>
In addition, in the "Anti Aging Plan"-book, it is proposed that one cooks eight meals (called One-a-day MegaMeals) on a specific day of the week and then freezes these meals to use during the entire week (this is referred to as the "[[Quantity-Cook-and Freeze]]" Option. For the remaining two courses of the day, 2 "Free-Choice Recipes" are used. Of course, here again, one may vary from this.
Variation from the proposed meals may be done through composing one's own meals. The composition should be done exactly and contain all the required [[RDA]] nutrients. To do so, the use of a CRON-diet-specific [[computer]] program (eg [http://spaz.ca/cronometer/ CRON-o-Meter], [http://www.walford.com/software.htm Dr. Walfords Interactive Diet Planner], ...) is required.
== Books on the CRON-diet ==
Books on the CRON-diet include:
* ''The Longevity Diet'', by [[Brian M. Delaney]] and Lisa and Roy Walford (ISBN 1-568-58309-5 ). This book is one of the main books about how one can attempt to live longer by eating food with less [[food energy]] in a careful way.
*''Eat to Live: The Revolutionary Formula for Fast and Sustained Weight Loss'' by [[Joel Fuhrman]] (ISBN 978-0316829458 )
* ''The Anti-Aging Plan: Strategies and Recipes for extending your Healthy years'' by Lisa Walford and Roy Walford
* ''Beyond the 120 Year Diet: How to Double Your Vital Years'' by Roy Walford
== References ==
{{reflist}}
==See also==
*[[Calorie restriction]]
*[[Calorie Restriction Society]]
== External links ==
*[http://en.wiki.calorierestriction.org/index.php/Recipes Examples of CRON-meals]
{{Longevity}}
[[Category:Diets]]
[[Category:Nutrient-rich, low calorie diets]]
[[Category:Eating behaviors]]