Doctor claims his diet has reversed ageing process by 20 years

Don’t you love it when a new diet comes along and professes to make you look like Brad Pitt? Even better are the ones that claim to cure you of all ills, or make you a couple of decades younger.

The latter is being promised by one doctor on social media, and he’s sharing lifestyle tips with his 2.3 million followers.

Dr Mark Hyman, 63, from Massachusetts, is claiming that if you eat well, you can actually reverse the ageing process, and he’s citing himself as a prime example.

Here he is, below: 

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The author of new book, Young Forever, says he’s reduced his biological age down to 43 – that’s 20 whole years younger than he actually is. Watch out Benjamin Button!

It might sound a little extra, but there’s no denying Dr Hyman lives a healthy lifestyle (even if it’s not to everyone’s taste).

He follows what’s known as a Pegan diet, which consists of 75 percent vegetables and fruit, and particularly focuses on berries and food that isn’t starchy in nature.

He starts his day with a breakfast smoothie, dubbed his ‘healthy ageing shake,’ made of 48 grams of protein, chia seeds and berries.

For the rest of his meals, he loads up on “whole foods such as nuts, seeds, olive oil, avocados, pasture-raised eggs, and small wild fatty fish such as sardines, mackerel, herring, anchovies and wild salmon contain healthy fats.” 

An example of Dr Mark Hyman’s colourful meals (Credit: Instagram/ Dr Mark Hyman)

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Plus, he advises people to use extra virgin olive oil (at low or no heat), organic virgin coconut oil and avocado oil (when using heat). Nothing to sniff at, there.

The doctor also encourages people to eat “deep coloured” veg in particular as they’re the most nutrient dense.

Plus, he advises dieters not to think of meat as a main meal, rather as a side, and for plant-based eaters to avoid processed alternatives.

“Most of us don’t connect our behaviors and choices with how we feel every day. We don’t connect what we eat, how much we rest and sleep, how much we exercise, or how much time we make for connecting with friends and community,” the doctor said of his lifestyle.

A smoothie a day keeps the doctor feeling young (Credit: Instagram/ Dr Mark Hyman)

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“Everything we do speaks to our genes—the food we eat, our relationships, our environment. You’re either telling your genes to age faster or age slower.”

Of course, it’s worth noting that the reliability of biological age tests is still up in the air. Whilst research into them is still ongoing, a study from the American Journal of Epidemiology concluded we don’t know enough about the ageing process yet for them to be fully trustworthy.

Saying that, there are experts who believe the tests to be indicators of how much ‘damage’ has gone on in your body – and there’s no disputing that on that front, the doctor’s results are impressive.

Dr Hyman’s biological age could also have something to do with the fact that he exercises for three hours a day, too.

An über healthy diet like this certainly won’t be for everyone, but if you’re looking for an anti ageing hack then there’s no harm in trying it – that is, if you’re willing to give up the cheeseburgers.