If there is one thing German’s are NOT known for it is being soft! Turns out that is true of their approach to antiaging and longevity!
Since the 80s, there have been several “longevity retreats” scattered across the Island of Sylt, off the idyllic coast of Northern Germany. However, if you go there expecting something like a “spa vacation,” think again!
“Sylt is not a holiday,” says Dr Jan Stritzke, the chief clinician at the Lanserhof wellness retreat on the island, “but once you visit the clinic, your life may change forever.”
Sylt is a sandy slice of paradise inlaid in the Wadden Sea. But don’t be fooled by the panoramic views, long beaches, or upscale interiors; a week at Lanserhof Sylt is hard work, with their keystone principles of fasting and purging.
Like many others in the antiaging and longevity community, Dr. Stritzke thinks the key to premature aging is systemic inflammation. It is his approach to stemming it that might be considered a little more radical than most.
To stem damaging inflammation, Lanserhof aims to reset guests’ gut health by paying close attention to diet, which will often consist of broths and teas at the beginning of the stay — liquids that facilitate the metabolic process to burn fat and cleanse your gut — before they are weaned onto solids. “We recommend guests stay for at least seven days, which is the minimum amount of time it takes to reset your gut microbiome, and return once a year,” says Dr. Stritzke. “Over the course of their stay, we’ll see a significant depletion in sugar levels and inflammation, but it can be very tough, especially for first-timers.”
Here are Five Longevity tips from Germany’s most “hardcore” antiaging center.
- Follow a simple diet
While it’s difficult to instill the broth and tea diet often used at Sylt in your daily life, “the easiest and obvious place to start a home is cutting out refined sugars and carbohydrates,” says Dr. Stritzke. Simple sugars like table sugar and processed bread have been proven to be pro-inflammatory, disrupting your gut microbiome and ultimately leading to degenerative illnesses. Taking these out of your diet will hugely benefit your long-term gut health.
- Manageable fasting
Fasting sounds intimidating but can be manageable if done properly. While his own regime of fasting for 36 to 40 hours straight is difficult and potentially dangerous for beginners, Dr Stritzke recommends starting with a 16:8 ratio, which means fasting for 16 hours of the day and eating for eight. Alternatively, you could designate a day of the week to fast on entirely for a similar effect.
- Regular check-ups
“Even if you’re young, you should definitely go and get your blood tested yearly,” Dr Stritzke advises, allowing you to preemptively detect inflammation. Dr Stritzke also highly recommends other types of preventative diagnostics, such as skin checks and colonoscopies.
- Meticulous mastication
An important part of eating at Lanserhof is chewing — forty times per mouthful, to be precise. This helps break down the food before you swallow and allows more nutrients to be absorbed in the digestion process, which has proven long-term benefits for gut health and fighting inflammation and is a super easy technique you can implement in daily life.
- Socializing
It’s a cliche, but no man — or woman, for that matter — is an island. While a healthy diet and regular exercise are important, loneliness and poor mental health, through the triggering of stress hormones, have been linked to inflammation. Dr. Stritzke emphasizes the connection between a healthy mind and a long life, making clear social activity is of paramount importance.
