A new study conducted by researchers from the University of Alabama at Birmingham has hinted that restricting the intake of glucose, the most common form of sugar consumed in daily diet, can not only extend the lifespan of hum beings, but also cut the chances of developing cancer and various other heart diseases.

As per the study, reduced exposure of healthy lung cells and cells which are precancerous to glucose managed to extend the life of healthy cells and sped up the killing of precancerous cells. This means that less intake of this food form cuts the cancer's rate of growth and progression.

Restriction of calories has earlier been linked to extended life span in low animal life forms like fruit-flies, worms and rats, but this is the first time that such a study has been conducted on actual, live human cells.

According to the researchers, restricted glucose level in the body mainly affects 2 genes - telomerase and p16; while the former is a life gene and the longer it is, the longer a person lives; the latter is a well known anti-cancer protein.

Details of the study have been published in the online edition of The Journal of the Federation of American Societies for Experimental Biology.