Mr. Fix Your Mind to Die - "Standing in the Shadows"

    "Again, enthusiasts might be tempted to hypothesize that if antioxidants 
cause weight loss in animals, then they might be good as diet aids in 
humans (the reader may guess what sort of diet books are now in the "life 
extension" pipeline).  Most food additive experiments, however, have been 
done with high concentrations of the chemical of interest mixed directly 
with the animals' food.  If humans were forced to eat all foods mixed with 
unpleasant BHT or evil-smelling 2-MEA, it is probable that rapid weight 
loss would occur.  Ingestion of smaller quantities in tasteless capsules 
would presumably be ineffective, and no calorie restriction benefit would 
result.  Furthermore, there is the question of toxicity of these 
substances.  If calorie restriction reliably causes extension of maximum 
life span, and yet artificial antioxidant supplementation, which usually 
results in calorie restriction, does not -- then one wonders why not.  
Antioxidant-fed animals, while living longer, are still not living as long 
as they ought to on the basis of food intake, and one might speculate that 
some toxicity of the antioxidants is being masked by the physiologic 
benefits of calorie restriction so that things come out nearly even.  If 
that is so, then the unsuspecting longevist who takes capsules of 
artificial antioxidants might be missing out on the main benefit of these 
agents (their bad taste), but might still be in for the full impact of any 
toxicity they have in store."

MrFYMTD - Shadows