This is often the real reason for the middle-aged spread. Others have a script that does not call for increased obesity at that phase of life. That inherited script has a lot to do with how successful people are with weight control programs of diet and exercise. It is probably true that individuals who overly restrict their diet, in an effort to be leaner than their genetic script intended, are not in an optimal state of health. But like the research with the starved rats, they may actually live longer.
Surveys show that almost every healthy, long-lived person has been a traditionally light eater.
They never overeat. They quit eating before they are full, and they always leave the table feeling slightly hungry. Other scientists, like Linus Pauling, disagree. SOD, superoxide dismutase. But, according to the medical field, taking SOD will not do anything to extend your life span or make you younger.