In the video linked below (which can only be viewed with Internet Explorer), Dr. Bruce Ames, Emeritus Professor of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, explains his development of an inexpensive intervention could delay the degenerative diseases accompanying aging -- including cancer, cardiovascular disease, cognitive decline, and immune dysfunction. According to Ames, most of the world’s population has inadequate intake of one or more of the micronutrients that a balanced diet should provide.
His “triage theory” posits that humans have developed a metabolic rebalancing response to micronutrient shortage that favors short-term survival while damaging long-term health.
According to Ames, as reported by Rejuvenation Science:
"Triage theory predicts that the consequence of moderate shortages of even a single micronutrient ... will result in insidious damage (e.g.: increased DNA damage) that, over time, leads to the acceleration of age-associated diseases (e.g.: increased cancer). As people with modest deficiencies have no overt clinical symptoms, there has been little incentive to correct these deficiencies”.
Dr. Ames’ theory on nutrient triage is likely also true for excess intake of nutrients like sugar. If you eat too much sugar, your body will raise insulin levels, which prevents you from dying from high blood sugar but will kill you slowly from insulin resistance.