Giving up sweets and avoiding vitamins could help you live longer, German researchers said in a recent study. They found that restricting glucose set off a process that extended the life span of some worms by up to 25 per cent. The key was boosting the level of “free radicals”— unstable molecules that can damage the body and which people often try to get rid of by consuming food or drinks rich in anti-oxidants such as vitamin E, they said in a study published in the journal Cell Metabolism. The body needs glucose, but taking in too much was unhealthy, said the study. Scientists have long known that restricting calorie intake in worms and monkeys increases longevity, and the study narrowed that idea further, to glucose.

Twins are not a rarity
People with twins in their extended families may wonder whether a crib for two is in their future, too. According to conventional wisdom, twins not only run in families, but they also—for some strange reason— skip at least one generation. It is a claim that is widely repeated, but only partly true. Scientists have known for some time that there is a gene that can predispose women to hyperovulation, or releasing two or more eggs in a single menstrual cycle. When both eggs are fertilised, the resulting siblings are fraternal twins. Because this gene can be passed on, the tendency to have fraternal twins can in fact run in families. Identical twins, on the other hand, result from one fertilised egg randomly splitting in two, creating two siblings with identical DNA. The notion that twins always skip a generation is also a myth.

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