Would it be possible to live longer by changing the diet? – Science – Life

A new study led by researchers at the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Healthshows that various healthy eating guidelines are related to a lower risk of premature death.

The researchers found that participants who scored high in adherence to at least one of the four healthy eating patterns were less likely to die during the study period from any cause and less likely to die during the study period, the researchers reported in a statement. by cardiovascular diseases, cancer or respiratory diseases, compared to people with lower scores.

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The results agree with the current Dietary Guidelines for the United Stateswhich recommend multiple healthy eating guidelines and note that it is possible to adapt them to individual food traditions and preferences.

Study co-author Dr. Frank Hu, chair of the Department of Nutrition, said people often get bored with just one way of eating, “so that’s good news. It means we have a lot of flexibility in creating our own guidelines.” healthy eating habits, which can be adapted to each person’s food preferences, health conditions and cultures.

“For example, if you’re on a healthy Mediterranean diet and after a few months you want to try something different, you can switch to a DASH (Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension) diet or a semi-vegetarian diet,” explains Hu, a professor of nutrition. and Epidemiology and director of the Department of Nutrition at the TH Chan School of Public Health. “Or you can follow the US dietary guidelines and create your own plate of healthy food,” CNN reported.

The researchers used data collected over 36 years from 75,230 women participating in the Nurses’ Health Study and 44,085 men in the Health Professionals Follow-up Study. All participants were free of cardiovascular disease or cancer at the start of the study and completed dietary questionnaires every four years.

Their information was scored based on each of four dietary pattern indices (Healthy Eating Index 2015, Alternative Mediterranean Diet, Healthy Vegetable Diet Index and Alternative Healthy Eating Index).

All of these diets share key components, such as whole grains, fruits, vegetables, nuts, and legumes, although other components differ between different eating patterns.

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The Mediterranean diet, for example, emphasizes healthy fats, especially monounsaturated fats, in addition to plant-based foods and moderate alcohol consumption.

The Healthy Plant-Based Diet, which also focuses on eating more plant products, but gives negative points to all animal products and any type of alcohol.

The Healthy Eating Index looks at whether people follow the basic US nutritional guidelines, which emphasize healthy plant-based foods, disapprove of red and processed meat, and discourage added sugar, unhealthy fats, and alcohol .

And the Alternate Healthy Eating Index uses the best available evidence, according to Hu, to include the foods and nutrients most closely associated with lower chronic disease risk. “We explicitly included nuts, seeds, whole grains, and lower consumption of red and processed meats and sugary drinks,” she added. “Moderate alcohol consumption is allowed,” says the expert.

According to the study, a higher score on at least one of the indices was associated with a lower risk of premature death from all causes and from cardiovascular diseases, cancer and respiratory diseases.

Higher scores on the Alternative Mediterranean Diet and the Alternative Healthy Eating Index were associated with a lower risk of death from neurogenerative disease.

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