Summer is upon us. More opportunities to be outdoors, more opportunities to eat fresh and light foods: and here we are already at the start of that revolution that undermines behavior unhealthy and commodity conditions that suggests Silvio Garattini, oncologist, pharmacologist and internationally renowned scientist. Thesummer it is perhaps the best time to promote a new mentality and new lifestyles because everything comes more spontaneously. It is therefore worth taking advantage of it to have, in a short time and with a few very simple tricks, surprising results.
Professor Garattini, who also founded and chairs the Institute of Pharmacological Research “Mario Negri” knows the mechanisms that intertwine between health and disease. And what is most surprising is that, precisely from his very long and profound experience, he deduced that the for successful corporate training, to stay in good health and stay there long, is on one side very simple, because it talks about nutrition and lifestyle, on the other hand very challenging because it wants to overturn certain commodity conditioning that has entered our daily lives.
Professor Garattini, it is at least surprising that, after your deep studies and research in the pharmacological field, you have come to the conclusion that drugs themselves can be our enemies. In what sense and on what occasions are they?
We are bombarded daily with advertising messages that invite us to take drugs for every single disorder. The messages are often not truthful and misleading. Drugs are important in some truly critical situations, but in many others they are not. In most cases, a disorder is resolved in a different way, without taking drugs. After all, the pharmacological market is a market and like all markets it wants to grow more and more, increase drugs and decrease the levels of normality.
What do you mean by normality levels: can you give an example?
Let's take the cholesterol level: if I think it's normal at 240, I will treat people who have higher levels. But if I say that normal is at 220, I broaden the group of people to treat with drugs. If I then say that cholesterol must be as low as possible, no one will escape treatment with a statin. And this applies to many other examples: from hypertension to diabetes.
So what are your tips for staying well?
It takes a revolution, a different way of approaching one's health and in this way most diseases can be avoided. A health detached from excessive consumption of drugs and guided instead by two cornerstones: better nutrition and physical activity.
Let's detail what he means by better nutrition, especially in summer as we are approaching
Two factors are crucial for nutrition: obviously the what, but also the how much. First of all, nutrition must be varied, that is, it is necessary to eat a bit of everything for two important reasons: to get the micro and macronutrients we need, but also to avoid accumulations of polluting factors contained in individual foods. In summer, more than in other periods of the year, it is necessary to eat very little meat, avoid butter and fatty foods, favor vegetables, fruit and complex carbohydrates such as rice and pasta, preferably wholemeal. Taking into account kidney function, it is also important to drink more water to replace the salts lost through sweat. Instead, it is necessary to move in moderation with ice cream and carbonated drinks due to their sugar content.
Professor, another of your rules, apparently simple, is the quantity of food you eat.. What is the measure? When is it best to eat? And what are the benefits?
Variety must be accompanied by moderation. As our elders used to say: you have to get up from the table with the feeling of still being a little hungry. If anything, you can resort to several smaller meals throughout the day. And then the time of day is not even that important: if someone prefers to eat in the evening, especially in summer, that's fine but the important thing is not to go to bed straight away. Research has shown that with a 30% reduction in food, you live 20% longer: eating little is therefore also a factor in longevity.
What do you think about fasting?
Again, some research has shown that there was no difference between those who ate freely and those who allowed 10-12 hours to pass between meals. I repeat, what matters is eating little, even if I do it five times a day, the important thing is the total.
Especially in summer, you often feel a strong sense of tiredness. Which you try to remedy also by resorting to food supplements. What are the real risks of summer?
Everyone has a brain thermostat with different characteristics. Some people tolerate the heat better, some less. For the latter, there is no need for supplements, the solution is, again, very simple: spend the hottest hours in a cool place, even if it is a supermarket. A few minutes in the sun is good because it allows you to produce vitamin D. On the other hand, staying under the summer sun for a long time, with your head uncovered, during the hottest hours of the day, that is approximately between 13 and 17 pm, is not a good idea: here there is a serious risk of heat stroke that can cause damage to the brain structure. Our body temperature is 37° and if it increases, various effects are triggered. The body defends itself by increasing vasodilation and therefore sweating. For this reason, if an individual is taking antihypertensive drugs, he or she must pay particular attention.
Why?
High temperatures increase vasodilation and the effect of antihypertensive drugs. For this reason, in many cases doctors recommend reducing or halving the dosage, but this is a decision that should be made with your doctor. The goal is to avoid the risks resulting from excessively low blood pressure, which can lead to collapses, falls, and fractures.
And now we come to physical activity, the other cornerstone for living well and for a long time. The world is populated by lazy people, we know, but if it is so important to move, what is the minimum union to observe to have advantages and thus encourage even the most reticent?
All activities are fine. At the very least, even a walk is fine, if done at a good pace, so that you feel a little shortness of breath and an increase in heart rate, for a distance of about 5 km per day. A slow walk among the windows or smoking a pipe is useless. Obviously, all sports are fine, as long as you don't end up hurting yourself. It takes 50 to 130 minutes a week of a brisk pace to have an advantage. And it's never too late, even at 80 years old you can start walking. It is clear that if we are talking about summer, the early morning or evening hours are preferable, when temperatures are lower.
What are the benefits of physical activity?
Physical activity first of all improves circulation and therefore prevents the formation of blood vessel blockages that then lead to serious diseases. It also leads to better cerebral circulation, also fighting mental illnesses. I myself walk 5 kilometers every day and when I'm done I feel much better. And above all it helps me think.
He has repeatedly stressed the importance of physical activity for the prevention of even serious illnesses.: is it so?
Many chronic diseases depend on bad lifestyle habits. We have 4 and a half million diabetics, who then have vision, cardiovascular, and kidney problems, which could be avoided. Just as 40% of tumors could be avoided, yet every year in Italy 180 thousand people die.
In addition to his high professionalism, his very age is an example of success. From the height of his almost 97 years he can offer advice even to the elderly on how to prolong life while remaining in good health
Excessive heat, which we were talking about before, can be particularly harmful for the elderly, because if it destroys brain cells it leads to greater cognitive deficiency and therefore to senile dementia. The rules of nutrition and physical activity that we have mentioned also apply to the elderly. But I would also add the importance of social life: an elderly person who is a little deaf, in pain or limping could be ashamed to be in company. He then ends up taking refuge at home and cutting off all contact with people: precisely the attitude that leads to senile dementia.
In one of his many books, “Living well” (San Paolo publisher)), collects a series of contributions from researchers at the Negri Institute (to which all royalties are donated) with very simple advice that however has enormous significance.
Good lifestyle habits benefit us first and foremost, but they also bring many other advantages. If we are well, our families do not suffer either, it is an act of generosity towards our loved ones. In addition, it is a help to the economy, and also to the National Health Service burdened by so much work that would be avoidable if everyone had healthy behavioral styles.
