How Changes in Diet Can Increase Life Expectancy by Up to Ten Years
A recent study has confirmed that some dietary modifications can increase one’s life expectancy. If a person begins eating for longevity at a young age, a diet high in whole grains and legumes can extend their life by up to ten years.
People may investigate the life expectancy advantages of consuming particular foods by using the study’s free, interactive online calculator. It should be no surprise that people’s health may be significantly impacted by the foods they eat.
Understanding the basics of healthy eating is one thing, but the amount of information accessible may be daunting.
Recent research makes it simple to calculate the positive impact of any food category on lifespan, and it includes a free interactive online calculator called Food4HealthyLife. The Global Burden of Diseases Trusted Source study provided extensive worldwide data for the study.
The calculator calculates the potential life expectancy benefit based on an individual’s age and the percentage of various food categories they consume.
The calculator only forecasts the possible impact of dietary changes alone; other factors affect life expectancy as well.
The Ideal vs Practical Diet
Both an “optimal diet” and a “feasible diet” are presented by the study and the calculator.
Prof. Fadnes was approached by Medical News Today to clarify:
“We have also presented a feasible diet approach that is closer to typical diets while also being linked with substantial benefits, as many would find it difficult to adhere to optimization of diet that might require larger changes.”
“This distinction makes sense nowadays,” Dr. Marialaura Bonaccio of IRCCS Istituto Neurologico Mediterraneo Neuromed in Italy told MNT.
“Progress, not perfection, is the ultimate goal,” stated Dr. Bonaccio, who did not participate in the study.
The younger a person starts eating for longevity, the greater the predicted increase in life expectancy. However, older adults can still extend their lives—even if to a lesser degree—by changing their eating habits.
The authors write, “Changing from a typical diet to the optimized diet at age 60 years would increase [life expectancy] by 8.0 […] years for women and 8.8 […] years for men, and 80-year-olds would gain 3.4 years.”
Kirkpatrick suggested several steps in transitioning to a healthier diet.
First, she advised focusing on unprocessed food that comes from nature 85% of the time. “Next,” she said, “I would suggest starting to transition animal proteins for plants, such as having a chickpea burger over a cheeseburger. You can even go with more fatty wild fish, such as salmon, as well.”
Foods for Longevity
“Eating more legumes, whole grains, and nuts and eating less red meat and processed meats were estimated to be the most effective ways to increase life expectancy for individuals with a typical diet,” said Prof. Fadnes.
Dr. Bonaccio noted, “These are mainly confirmatory results and align with the vast majority of food-based dietary guidelines and education programs worldwide.”
One aspect of the study’s recommendations that may surprise some is a promotion of legumes and whole grains over fruit and vegetables for extending longevity. Prof. Fadnes explained to MNT:
“It might appear a bit surprising that the benefit of further increasing fruits and vegetables is likely to be lower than the benefit of optimizing legumes and whole grains, but this is due to most people having already ‘harvested’ some of the benefits from fruits and vegetables by already consuming more of these compared [with], for example, legumes and whole grains.”
“It is worth noting,” said Dr. Bonaccio, “that when we refer to the Mediterranean diet, which is one of the healthiest dietary models in the world, we should always consider that this is not just a grocery shopping list. Rather, it reflects an integrated way of living — diet comes from the Greek word dìaita, which means ‘lifestyle.’ That includes regular physical exercise but also other types of ‘exercises,’ such as mental, cultural, spiritual, that may have a favorable impact on longevity.”
Future Research
Dr. Bonaccio would like future research to dig a little deeper into the role of processed foods in health and longevity:
“Growing evidence in the last years supports the notion that a large dietary share of ultra-processed food […] is likely to be dangerous for health. […] So the point is: Is this Western diet harmful for health because of its low nutritional profile, or has it something to do with its massive industrial processing? I feel this question can potentially reveal unexpected results that may lead to a radical change in the nutrition paradigm.”
She also hopes future research explores another question. She said to MNT:
“It would be worth analyzing how modifiable risk factors contribute to increased life expectancy free of diseases,” which one could refer to as healthy life expectancy as opposed to life expectancy. “Whether extra years of life […] are spent in good or bad health is a crucial question,” she concluded.