| Times have changed only minimally for Sebrell, a committed nutrition advocate, and his wife Helena (also a BLSA subject). "Today I get up with Helena, we walk the shores of the beach near our home (in Pompano Beach, Fla.) for a mile or so each morning, then we tend to breakfast on the balcony of our 22nd floor apartment. It's really something to see the sun rise each morning. After this, then I get down to business." |
| The couple has found life in the Sunshine State most pleasurable for the 8 years they have lived there. At the same time, Sebrell has continued his scientific love affair with nutrition, a carry over from his early days in science, beginning with the Public Health Service in 1926. In 1929, he studied pellagra, a serious nutritional deficiency, with renowned scientist Dr. Joseph Goldberger at NIH. |
| Following this, he conducted basic vitamin research and investigations of malnutrition. His work elicited numerous key findings of world-wide significance. In particular, he helped set up the first international standards of nutrition for the League of Nations. He was also the first scientist to recognize and describe the dietary disease ariboflavinosis. Sebrell also was a consultant to the United Nation's Children Fund (UNICEF), helping to devise an improved nutritional program for malnourished children in undeveloped countries. |
| In recognition of his expertise within the NIH scientific community and for his leadership abilities, Sebrell moved up the ranks to become director of NIH in 1950, a position he held until he retired in 1955. Even prior to this "golden opportunity," however, Sebrell played a critical role in the advent of aging research. This was an era when aging was almost entirely neglected in the laboratory. "No, the scientific interest just wasn't
there," he recalls. Yet Sebrell, who in 1941 was chief of the NIH Division of Physiology, saw the importance of conducting research on human aging. And it was he who contacted and persuaded Dr. Nathan Shock ("the father of aging research"), now NIH scientist emeritus, to journey east to Baltimore to begin an NIH aging program in collaboration with the Baltimore City Hospitals. |
| At Sebrell's insistence, Shock left his post at the University of California at Berkeley. At the time, the latter researcher was involved in studies of adolescents, so his change of direction was of both a territorial and professional nature. Much credit has to go to Sebrell, says former NIA scientific director Shock. I can assure you, without Dr. Sebrell there would be no gerontology today in the Department of Health and Human Services," says Shock, who at age 80 still works 3 days a week at NIA's intramural research facility, the Gerontology Research Center in Baltimore. "He took one heck of a chance hiring me," he adds. This "gamble" has since yielded many dividends, according to Sebrell. Shock eventually went on to begin the BLSA in 1958, now considered to be the most comprehensive study of aging in human subjects ever to take place in the U.S. | 
Dr. William Henry Sebrell Jr. (l), former NIH Director (1950-1955) meets with friend and colleague Dr. Nathan W. Shock, NIH scientist emeritus. |
| As for growing older, time does have a way of catching up with you, Sebrell admits. There are changes. Of a personal nature, he says that he's conscious of some of the changes. "My reaction time is slowing. My accuracy for shooting skeet has declined some." Throughout his life and especially now, Sebrell has remained convinced of the importance of nutrition in maintaining good health and, perhaps, offsetting some of the infirmities often seen later in life, especially obesity and its cumulative conditions, he says. In the same breath, he praises exercise. |
| Obesity is our biggest nutritional problem," he explains. "As you age and your physical activity slows down and your metabolism changes, you've got to reduce your food intake to avoid becoming fat," says Sebrell, who weighs in at a trim 140 pounds. The elderly must learn to cut calories, but still eat proper, nutritional, high-quality foods. He suggests trimming back on foods laden with concentrated calories, especially refined sugars and saturated fats. "At the same time, don't forget the need for regular physical activity, " he advises. |
| The nutrition buff agrees that it's difficult to justify the importance of a well-balanced diet in the laboratory, but he firmly acknowledges its profitable health payoffs. These days the Sebrell's meal table is filled with such nourishing food choices as fresh fish, fiber-rich cereals, green vegetables, fresh fruits, rice, orange juice, and chicken. He believes that if older men and women strive for a sound, but calorie conscious meal plan, then they probably won't need vitamin or mineral supplements. |
| Indeed, nutrition is Sebrell's life. A former medical consultant for Weight Watcher's Foundation, he is currently its executive director. In this capacity, he spends about 3 months a year attending professional meetings. In the work parlor of his Pompano Beach home, he regularly reviews grants for Weight Watchers and "has a hand" in distributing grant money to promising nutrition researchers. |
| Asked about leisure activities, when his schedule allows, mention of the board game Scrabble emerged. "We find a little time to play almost every day and we get into some of the finest (Scrabble) tournaments," Helena chips in. But when queried on his secrets for a long and healthy life, Sebrell appears stumped. He can not impart a mystery formula. |
| That's because I have no real secrets," he says. "I suppose I was born with good genes. I gave up smoking many years ago. I exercise." And, he subscribes to the common sense approach to life -" I do what I like to do and what makes good sense." |
| It's a formula we all can live by. |
