Nutrition and fitness expert JJ Virgin provides healthy eating tips for longevity
CHICAGO (CBS) -- You want to look younger? who doesn't right?
Well, nutrition and fitness expert JJ Virgin doesn't look a day over 40.
Guess what? She just turned 60 this year!
The four-time New York Times best-selling author says research shows what you eat can turn your biological clock back by 10 to 20 years.
"We're talking dramatic shifts here, just by changing what's at the end of your fork."
Nutrition and fitness expert JJ Virgin says the importance of protein in a person's diet can't be overlooked - especially when it comes to longevity.
She says wild-caught fish and grass-fed beef are among the best sources. Aim for 30 grams of protein at breakfast, lunch, and dinner.
"As we age, we don't need less protein, we need more," Virgin said. "Now as we age, starting at age 40, we lose approximately one percent of our muscle mass every single year and it starts to double at age 60, so we really need to make sure that when we're starting to eat, the first thing on our plate and the first thing we do, is eat protein first."
Virgin says it's important to make - what she calls - an oil change when it comes to the oils used on salads or when cooking to reduce inflammation in the body.
"One of the simplest things you can do here is swap out the corn oil for the extra virgin olive oil, that's so rich in the polyphenols, in fact in the Blue Zones, in one of the areas, I think it was Sardinia, they were eating a liter of olive oil a week, with a significant reduction in heart disease."
If you want a better complexion, Virgin says there's one thing you should eat less of in your diet.
"Sugar creates something called advanced glycated end products. We call them AGES which is this perfect acronym for them because what happens is, the protein, the collagen, everything in your skin, binds with these sugars and then you get from that wrinkles, brown spots."
And don't forget to look for hidden sources of sugar.
"The big culprit is usually like dressings and drinks, so that raspberry vinaigrette just turned your salad into a sundae, swap it out for some apple cider vinegar and extra virgin olive oil."
Virgin says hydration is important too.
She suggests drinking antioxidant-rich green tea and water - especially cold water. Drinking a glass of cold water she says can boost your metabolism by as much as 30% for 30 minutes.
If you would like to learn more, we've included links on how to follow and connect with JJ Virgin below:
Social media:
https://www.instagram.com/jj.virgin
https://www.facebook.com/groups/1715310615390411
https://www.facebook.com/JJVirginOfficial
Podcast: subscribetojj.com
Website: jjvirgin.com
Store: store.jjvirgin.com
books: https://store.jjvirgin.