A recent Harvard study has found that maintaining a healthy diet in midlife can significantly increase the likelihood of achieving a higher quality of life in later years. The findings, presented on Tuesday at the Nutrition 2024 event in Chicago, highlight the crucial link between diet during midlife and healthy aging.
The research, conducted by the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health and unveiled at the American Society for Nutrition’s annual event, indicates that fewer than one in ten individuals manage to live disease-free while maintaining good physical, cognitive, and mental health into their 70s.
Drawing on 30 years of data from over 100,000 participants, the study revealed that individuals who adhered to a healthy diet from their 40s onward were 43 to 84 percent more likely to be physically and mentally well-functioning at age 70 compared to those who did not follow such dietary practices. Anne-Julie Tessier, a postdoctoral fellow at Harvard who led the study, emphasized the significant impact of a diet rich in fruits and vegetables on the aging process.
“People who adhered to healthy dietary patterns in midlife, especially those rich in fruits, vegetables, whole grains, and healthy fats, were significantly more likely to achieve healthy aging,” Tessier stated. “This suggests that what you eat in midlife can play a big role in how well you age.”
The research highlighted that higher intakes of fruits, vegetables, whole grains, unsaturated fats, nuts, legumes, and low-fat dairy products were associated with better odds of healthy aging. Conversely, higher consumption of trans fats, sodium, and meat was linked to poorer outcomes.
While previous studies have shown that a healthy diet can prevent chronic diseases, this latest research focuses on the absence of disease at age 70 and the ability to live independently while enjoying a good quality of life. Tessier noted that traditionally, dietary guidelines have concentrated on preventing chronic diseases like heart disease. However, this study provides evidence that dietary recommendations should also promote overall healthy aging as a long-term goal.
Researchers analyzed data from more than 106,000 individuals dating back to 1986. Participants, who were at least 39 years old and free of chronic diseases at the study’s outset, provided dietary information through questionnaires every four years. By 2016, nearly half of the participants had died, and only 9.2 percent had survived to age 70 or older while maintaining freedom from chronic disease and experiencing good physical, cognitive, and mental health.
The study compared rates of healthy aging among individuals with the highest and lowest adherence to eight defined healthy dietary patterns, including the Mediterranean and plant-based diets. Tessier pointed out that the “planetary health diet,” based on the EAT-Lancet Commission’s report emphasizing fruits, vegetables, whole grains, plant proteins, and healthy fats from sustainable sources, emerged as one of the leading dietary patterns associated with healthy aging.
“The fact that it emerged as one of the leading dietary patterns associated with healthy aging is particularly interesting because it supports that we can eat a diet that may benefit both our health and the planet,” Tessier said.
The strong ties between diet and healthy aging remained even when researchers accounted for physical activity and other health-related factors. Tessier believes that future research could further elucidate the potential impact of switching to a healthier dietary pattern later in life, given the study’s focus on dietary patterns in middle age.