What the world’s leading ageing scientists taught me about diet and living longer

Processed foods are increasingly linked to a higher risk of disease and may accelerate physical and cognitive decline,

Science writer David Cox with his book The Age Code. Picture: by David McHugh / Brighton Pictures

The first line of the report was a shock. “You are two years and two months biologically older,” was the startling conclusion, based on an ageing test that had measured various chemical patterns across my DNA.

While I was aware in my mid-30s of encroaching middle age, I had assumed I would be biologically younger. My lifestyle seemed healthy: I play sports, don’t smoke, and only drink alcohol occasionally. But other tests would soon confirm that this result was no fluke.