Eat less, think more, live forever

Many studies suggest that obesity is bad for our brain, slows it down, causes early brain aging, making it susceptible to diseases typical of older people as the Alzheimer's and Parkinson's. In contrast, caloric restriction keeps the brain young. 

Nevertheless, the precise molecular mechanism behind the positive effects of an hypocaloric diet on the brain remained unknown till now.

Now a team of Italian researchers at the Catholic University of Sacred Heart in Rome have discovered that this molecule, called CREB1, is triggered by "caloric restriction" (low caloric diet) in the brain of mice. They found that CREB1 activates many genes linked to longevity and to the proper functioning of the brain.

Here's some good news for all of us: "Our hope is to find a way to activate CREB1, for example through new drugs, so to keep the brain young without the need of a strict diet," Dr Giovambattista Pani, researcher at the Institute of General Pathology, said.

Yeah, you can keep slurping that pasta.

I've been trapping lots of mice in my attic. Guess they eat too much, because they're pretty stupid. Of course, I'm luring them with peanut butter with the correct mixture of omega fatty acids, so they may not be so dumb after all. Just nutrionally-correct dead.