The answer to making yourself younger at a cellular level appears to have been disclosed by a Florida scientist.
The method is quite simple – just live underwater.
A retired Navy diver, Dr Joseph Dituri, spent an impressive 100 days in an undersea lodge, located at the bottom of a 30ft-deep lagoon in Key Largo, Florida, which was a high-pressure environment.
He attributed this experience to reversing the age of his body at a cellular level, and he claims that it is now more than 20 years younger than his real age.
Reportedly, blood tests indicated a 50% reduction in every inflammatory marker in his body, and 17 times the number of stem cells than expected.
'So essentially, [I have] stem cell proliferation, decrease in pain, decrease in inflammation, and inhibition of toxins,' Dr Dituri stated in an interview with WKMG News in Orlando.
'I’m 56 now. My extrinsic [biological] age was 44. When I got out of the water, my extrinsic age was 34. My telomeres became longer. I actually became younger while I was under the water.'
Telomeres are structures constructed from DNA sequences and proteins located at the ends of chromosomes. Every time a cell divides, they become shorter.
Once they disappear, the cell dies – so by lengthening the telomeres, the cells will live for a longer time, and the aging process slows down.
The scientist stated that his telomeres are not as long as they were when he first emerged, but they are still longer than before. He has not appeared to offer any additional information or evidence about his research or measurements.
Dr Dituri thinks that this reversal of age was due to living in a high-pressure environment – also known as a ‘hyperbaric’ environment.
These chambers, which are filled with pressurized air, have been around since 1662, and the health benefits have been well documented, although through anecdotal evidence rather than high-quality clinical trials.
Now Dr Dituri has recommended that research should be conducted into the ‘mechanisms of action’ – what is happening on a molecular level that leads to health effects.
He mentioned that hyperbaric therapy is something worth exploring for diseases like ulcerative colitis, a chronic bowel disease associated with inflammation.
Dr Dituri also claimed to have 17 times the number of stem cells he had before his underwater stay. Stem cells can develop into any other cell type in the body and are linked with regenerative medicine.
However, the high-pressure environment also caused him to shrink a lot – in the opposite way to how astronauts grow in space.
'I shrank by three-quarters of an inch, I had some significant problems, I cracked a tooth while I was down there,' Dr Dituri told reporters.
During the interview, he mentioned that he fasts until 3pm, drinking only water, around a gallon a day, and bone broth until its time to eat.
Fasting is also believed to provide anti-ageing advantages, but for hyperbaric therapy, he stated: ‘The research isn’t complete, but we’re investigating. There are many things it can't treat, but there are some beneficial applications.'
Metro.co.uk has reached out to Dr Dimuri’s office to get more details about the results.
