Adnkronos (Adnkronos) – "I eat a good breakfast, I eat very little for lunch, and then I eat something in the evening. In terms of quantity, my diet is modest; I currently weigh 52 kilos: I eat relatively little." Professor Silvio Garattini will turn 98 in a few days. The founder and president of the Mario Negri Research Institute lays out his "recipe" in an appearance on La volta buona.
"You can eat as best you can, but those who eat a lot get fat. There's no magic: showing 100-year-old people eating whatever they want are exceptions. Most people die sooner; that's not the rule," says the scientist.
We must distinguish between length of life and length of life in good health.
"If we evaluate the length of a healthy life, Italy falls in the rankings. There are no single factors that can improve life expectancy: it depends on many factors. There are several parameters we must keep in mind, they are all important: otherwise we cannot improve. We have too many addictions to smoking and alcohol. In Italy, it's hard to say, but wine is carcinogenic," says Garattini, listing the negative factors.
“We have drug addiction, in Italy 10% of people use cannabis and 5% use codeine.
We spend €2000 trillion a year on legal gambling, another addiction. Then there's the excessive consumption of cured meats and cold cuts, which are a group 1 risk factor for colon cancer,” he adds. The positive pillars are well-known and shouldn't be overlooked: “To extend your life in good health, you need exercise, you need sleep, which 'cleans' your brain twice as fast at night. Your diet should be varied but limited; it's one of the key factors. Then there's the education factor: where there's culture, there's an interest in health.”
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