The Golden Ratio Lifestyle Diet takes a unique approach to wellness by incorporating information from a variety of scientific disciplines to explore longevity. Right from the get-go the introduction lets readers know that this is not your run-of-the-mill lifestyle health plan. The Fibonacci Sequence and Nature’s Heartbeat are some of the topics that are so thoroughly researched and explained with real-world examples that the book will quickly win you over.
As a total body improvement book, it begins with the simplest of concepts: breathing. Citing a study from longevity researcher Roy Walford, M.D., the book claims that “People with low VC (vital lung capacity) for their age did not live as long on the average as those with high VC, and as we have learned, predictability is the most important indicator that a biomarker is measuring true functional age.” Vital capacity (VC) is a measurement of how much air you can breathe out, after maximal inhalation. This chapter on “Healthy Breath and Circulation” reminds us all how critical a healthy oxygen intake is to further longevity and daily health. The authors state that your vital lung capacity is the number one predictor of longevity.
This segues into a fascinating explanation about the Golden Ratio anatomy of our lungs that would seem to be a little far-fetched if not for the abundance of hard data to support it. The following chapter deals with another simple, yet vitally important factor in human health: water and hydration. Each section of this chapter deals with a different aspect of why hydration is important, but the bottom line is that one of the quickest ways to compromise your health is to be chronically dehydrated.
Chapters titled “Sleep, Rest and Recovery,” “Posture” and “Happiness” are certainly valuable but to life extension readers the insights in the chapters dedicated to Nutrition and Detoxification will be truly important and exciting there is a section on the “Golden Ratio of Evolution: Omega-6/ Omega-3 Balance” that links mass dietary ignorance with a lack of knowledge about these crucial fatty acids.
In addition, a section on the “Profound New View of Fullness” will be particularly interesting to those practicing caloric restriction. One of the tenants of this piece is that eating until you were only about two thirds full the natural golden ratio capacity of your stomach, supports optimal meal portions and healthy digestion for those looking to limit their calories, this is a practical way to start down that path.
The book finds the Golden Ratio, defined in the text as “…Nature’s blueprint for virtually all biologic processes…,” in nearly every facet of our health and wellness.