Eating a plant-based diet comes with many benefits. Studies have found that it can boost your immune system, reduce inflammation, can help with weight loss and weight management, a plant-based diet is packed with fiber, and it is associated with reductions in the risk of developing certain health conditions.
According to the results of a recent study, eating a plant-based diet may be associated with slowing the aging process. A team of researchers based in China and affiliated with Qingdao University conducted a study examining the relationship between eating a plant-based diet and various measurements of aging. The study’s findings were published in the journal Nutrition Research.
“This study aimed to investigate the association between different plant-based diet indices, phenotypic age acceleration (PhenoAgeAccel), and biological age acceleration (BioAgeAccel). We hypothesized that healthful plant-based diets would negatively affect PhenoAgeAccel and BioAgeAccel in US adults.” the researchers stated about their study.
“The cross-sectional analysis included 22,363 participants, and information was obtained from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey database. The quality of plant-based diet was assessed using 3 indices: overall plant-based diet index (PDI), healthful PDI (hPDI), and unhealthful PDI (uPDI). Phenotypic age (PA) and biological age (BA) was calculated based on a linear combination of chronological age and 12 multi-system clinical chemistry biomarkers in accordance with the previously established method.” the researchers stated about their methodology.
“This study’s findings indicate that PDI and hPDI scores were significantly associated with slower progression of PhenoAgeAccel and BioAgeAccel, whereas unhealthy plant-based diets appeared to accelerate the progression of PhenoAgeAccel and BioAgeAccel. The findings from this study provide a valuable reference for guiding the development and improvement of healthier nutrition policies.” the study’s authors concluded.
As with all studies and trials, this one study is not the final answer on the subject, and presumably, there will be more research conducted. An item of note: a recent study found that a one gram daily dose of omega-3 is associated with a slowing of the aging process to some degree, for what that is worth. You can read more about it in a recent article on this website.
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