Maybe it has to do with portion control, like the article says. Maybe it's not really so much as what you eat but how much/little of it you do. Taking a vitamin and having a few carrots a day also probably helps
+1 I've seen it all - people living on chicken fingers and pizza who go on for years and years, and people who eat healthier than 99% of all Americans, mostly organic veggies, and they fall apart. What does seem reliable, is that if you are a junk food junkie and switch to a healthy diet, you will feel ~30% healthier and all within a few weeks. Basic nutrition is easy to achieve but will only buy you so much. You will "plateau" somewhere between sickness and health. To feel really decent you need more tricks to cover up your diseases, like vitamins or supplements or drugs. Something to manipulate your biochemistry.
If basic nutrition isn't enough for you, and you need a super-healthy diet to feel well (like KTS), that means you have *** FOOD ALLERGIES *** And allergies grow. You may notice the foods that you feel "healthy" on is shrinking even beyond the vegetarian restrictions. I've been there.
I remember reading about studies with mice that demonstrated a link between undereating and longevity. Here is link discussing the subject: http://www.technologyreview.com/read_article.aspx?ch=specialsections&sc=living&id=16826
http://www.technologyreview.com/rea...living&id=16826 I recall back in the eighties when some of this work was going on, a doctor of some sort was a sincere advocate of this low calorie diet and he only ate every other day. It didn't work for him. He died young. Seems there are still advocates of the same sort of diets. http://www.everydiet.org/diet/every-other-day-diet
Wow, that every other day thing seems a bit extreme. I noticed on the link that the author was advocating the diet as a way to lose weight without "losing sanity". While it is a bit of a misnomer, as the fasting days did include a few hundred calories of food, that strategy would drive me crazy. I think my "regular" eating days would be subject to binges and overeating. I was rereading a book by Clarence Bass, any longtime Muscle & Fitness readers probably recognize the name. He has maintained a very low bodyfat % for much of his adult life. His eating strategy seems pretty boring, he eats almost identically every day. He never has to count calories. During weekdays when I am working, that plan works very well since I don't need to stock a refrigerator full of 30 different foods, trying to juggle and make sure nothing spoils. Anyway, I just read "Challenge yourself..." which was published shortly after the author turned 60. His website is full of quick-read articles if anyone is interested: http://www.cbass.com/