Calorie restriction (CR) in the absence of malnutrition exerts a multitude of physiological benefits with ageing in model organisms and in humans including improvements in vascular function. Despite the well-known benefits of chronic CR, long-term energy restriction is not likely to be a feasible healthy lifestyle strategy in humans due to poor sustained adherence, and presents additional concerns if applied to normal weight older adults. This review summarizes what is known about the effects of CR on vascular function with ageing including the underlying molecular 'energy- and nutrient-sensing' mechanisms, and discusses the limited but encouraging evidence for alternative pharmacological and lifestyle interventions that may improve vascular function with ageing by mimicking the beneficial effects of long-term CR.
Keywords: CR-mimetics; arterial stiffness; endothelial dysfunction; energy sensing; intermittent fasting.
© 2016 The Authors. The Journal of Physiology © 2016 The Physiological Society.