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The Effect of Dietary Patterns and Lifestyle on Healthy Aging

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A special issue of Nutrients (ISSN 2072-6643). This special issue belongs to the section "Geriatric Nutrition".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (15 July 2024) | Viewed by 22605

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Dr. Richard Hayhoe

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Guest Editor

Faculty of Health, Medicine and Social Care, Anglia Ruskin University, Chelmsford CM1 1SQ, UK
Interests: micronutrients; musculoskeletal health; aging

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Aging is a complex process involving a multitude of different factors and biological pathways. These include genetics and the environment as well as diet and other lifestyle factors, all of which combine to determine an individual’s risk profile for age-associated disease. While some of these are impossible or difficult to change, diet and lifestyle can more easily be modified, and thus represent good targets to improve health at both an individual and population level. This issue urgently needs to be addressed as people are living longer, but are living more of those years with disability, which is posing a growing burden to society and threatening to overwhelm health and social care services. Previous research has shown the importance of particular dietary components and individual nutrients in maintaining specific health outcomes during aging. More recently, the focus has been on combinations of foods and the role of dietary patterns and lifestyle in reducing the risk of age-associated disease and improving health outcomes in older individuals. This Special Issue aims to explore the latest evidence of the effects of dietary patterns and lifestyle on healthy aging. Original research articles and reviews addressing any aspect of this topic are invited to be submitted for consideration.

Dr. Richard Hayhoe
Guest Editor

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Keywords

dietary patterns
lifestyle
nutrition
healthy aging
nutrients
micronutrients
vitamins and minerals
age-related diseases

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Published Papers (4 papers)

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Research

15 pages, 318 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Mediterranean Diet-Based Sustainable Healthy Diet and Multicomponent Training Combined Intervention Effect on Body Composition, Anthropometry, and Physical Fitness in Healthy Aging

by Joana Sampaio, Andreia Pizarro, Joana Pinto, Bruno Oliveira, André Moreira, Patrícia Padrão, Paula Guedes de Pinho, Pedro Moreira, Renata Barros and Joana Carvalho

Nutrients 2024, 16(20), 3527; https://doi.org/10.3390/nu16203527 - 18 Oct 2024

Viewed by 968

Abstract

Background: Diet and exercise interventions have been associated with improved body composition and physical fitness. However, evidence regarding their combined effects in older adults is scarce. This study aimed to investigate the impact of a combined 12-week Mediterranean diet-based sustainable healthy diet (SHD) and multicomponent training (MT) intervention on body composition, anthropometry, and physical fitness in older adults. Methods: Diet intervention groups received a weekly SHD food supply and four sessions, including a SHD culinary practical workshop. The exercise program included MT 50 min group session, three times a week, on non-consecutive days. Body composition and physical fitness variables were assessed through dual X-ray absorptiometry, anthropometric measurements, and senior fitness tests. Repeated measures ANOVA, with terms for group, time, and interaction, was performed. Results: Our results showed that a combined intervention significantly lowered BMI and total fat. Also, significant differences between assessments in all physical fitness tests, except for aerobic endurance, were observed. Adjusted models show significant differences in BMI (p = 0.049) and WHR (p = 0.037) between groups and in total fat (p = 0.030) for the interaction term. Body strength (p < 0.001), balance tests (p < 0.001), and aerobic endurance (p = 0.005) had significant differences amongst groups. Considering the interaction term, differences were observed for upper body strength (p = 0.046) and flexibility tests (p = 0.004 sit and reach, p = 0.048 back scratch). Conclusions: Our intervention study demonstrates the potential of implementing healthy lifestyle and sustainable models to promote healthy and active aging. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue The Effect of Dietary Patterns and Lifestyle on Healthy Aging)

14 pages, 622 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Life-Course Socioeconomic Trajectories and Biological Aging: The Importance of Lifestyles and Physical Wellbeing

by Simona Esposito, Marialaura Bonaccio, Augusto Di Castelnuovo, Emilia Ruggiero, Mariarosaria Persichillo, Sara Magnacca, Amalia De Curtis, Chiara Cerletti, Maria Benedetta Donati, Giovanni de Gaetano, Licia Iacoviello, Alessandro Gialluisi and on behalf of the Moli-Sani Study Investigators

Nutrients 2024, 16(19), 3353; https://doi.org/10.3390/nu16193353 - 2 Oct 2024

Viewed by 901

Abstract

Background/Objectives: Studies investigating the associations between life-course socioeconomic status (SES) and biological aging (the difference between biological and chronological age, Δage) have mostly been focused on epigenetic clocks and on a limited number of mediators. The aim of this study was to investigate this relationship using a blood-based aging clock, as well as the potential mediation of different factors including lifestyles or their proxies and physical and mental wellbeing. Methods: A deep-learning aging clock based on 36 blood markers was deployed, in a large Italian population cohort: the Moli-sani study (N = 4772; ≥35 years; 48% men). SES was defined as an eight-level trajectory over the life course, which was tested with Δage in linear models incrementally adjusted for age, sex, and prevalent health conditions. Moreover, the proportion of associations explained by diverse potential mediators, including diet, smoking, physical activity, alcohol, body mass index (BMI), and physical and mental quality of life (QoL) was estimated. Results: Compared to participants with a stably high SES, those showing an educational and financial downward trajectory were older than their CA (β (95%CI) = 1.28 (0.73–1.83) years), as were those with a stably low SES (0.75 (0.25–01.25) years). These associations were largely explained by the tested mediators (overall proportion: 36.2% and 66.3%, respectively), prominently by physical QoL (20.7% and 41.0%), BMI (16.8% and 34.3%), lifestyle (10.6% and 24.6%), and dietary inflammatory score (5.3% and 9.2%). Conclusions: These findings indicate that life-course socioeconomic inequalities are associated with accelerated biological aging, suggesting physical wellbeing and pro-inflammatory lifestyles as potential public health targets to slow down this process in susceptible socioeconomic strata of the population. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue The Effect of Dietary Patterns and Lifestyle on Healthy Aging)

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12 pages, 392 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Egg Consumption and 4-Year Change in Cognitive Function in Older Men and Women: The Rancho Bernardo Study

by Donna Kritz-Silverstein and Ricki Bettencourt

Nutrients 2024, 16(16), 2765; https://doi.org/10.3390/nu16162765 - 19 Aug 2024

Viewed by 19104

Abstract

The effect of dietary cholesterol on cognitive function is debatable. While eggs contain high levels of dietary cholesterol, they provide nutrients beneficial for cognitive function. This study examined the effects of egg consumption on change in cognitive function among 890 ambulatory adults (N = 357 men; N = 533 women) aged ≥55 years from the Rancho Bernardo Study who attended clinic visits in 1988–1991 and 1992–1996. Egg intake was obtained in 1988–1991 with a food frequency questionnaire. The Mini-Mental Status Exam (MMSE), Trails B, and category fluency were administered at both visits to assess cognitive performance. Sex-specific multiple regression analyses tested associations of egg intake with changes in cognitive function after adjustment for confounders. The mean time between visits was 4.1 ± 0.5 years; average ages were 70.1 ± 8.4 in men and 71.5 ± 8.8 in women (p = 0.0163). More men consumed eggs at higher levels than women; while 14% of men and 16.5% of women reported never eating eggs, 7.0% of men and 3.8% of women reported intakes ≥5/week (p = 0.0013). In women, after adjustment for covariates, egg consumption was associated with less decline in category fluency (beta = −0.10, p = 0.0241). Other associations were nonsignificant in women, and no associations were found in men. Results suggest that egg consumption has a small beneficial effect on semantic memory in women. The lack of decline observed in both sexes suggests that egg consumption does not have detrimental effects and may even have a role in the maintenance of cognitive function. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue The Effect of Dietary Patterns and Lifestyle on Healthy Aging)

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20 pages, 1842 KiB

Open AccessArticle

The Relationship between Healthy Vascular Aging with the Mediterranean Diet and Other Lifestyles in the Spanish Population: The EVA Study

by Leticia Gómez-Sánchez, David González-Falcon, Rocío Llamas-Ramos, María Cortés Rodríguez, Emiliano Rodríguez-Sánchez, Luis García-Ortiz, Inés Llamas-Ramos, Marta Gómez-Sánchez and Manuel A. Gómez-Marcos

Nutrients 2024, 16(15), 2565; https://doi.org/10.3390/nu16152565 - 5 Aug 2024

Viewed by 1341

Abstract

The aim of this study was to analyze the relationship between healthy vascular aging (HVA) and the Mediterranean diet alongside other lifestyles in a Spanish population aged 35 to 75 years without previous cardiovascular diseases. Methods: In this cross-sectional descriptive study, 501 individuals aged 35 to 75 years were recruited from five health centers by random sampling stratified by age and sex (55.90 ± 14.24 years, 49.70% men). HVA was determined in two steps. Step 1: Subjects with vascular damage to the carotid arteries or peripheral arterial disease were classified as non-HVA. Step 2: The study population was classified by age and sex using the percentiles of the vascular aging index (VAI), with VAI ≤p25 considered HVA and >p25 considered non-HVA. The VAI was estimated using the following formula (VAI = (log (1.09) × 10 cIMT + log (1.14) cfPWV) × 39.1 + 4.76. Carotid–femoral pulse wave velocity (cfPWV) was measured with the SphygmoCor^® device, and carotid intima–media thickness using Sonosite Micromax^® ultrasound. Mediterranean diet (MD) adherence, alcohol and tobacco use were recorded through validated questionnaires. Physical activity was assessed with the ActiGraph-GT3X^® accelerometer. Results: The mean VAI value was 61.23 ± 12.86 (men—63.47 ± 13.75 and women—59.04 ± 11.54; p < 0.001). HVA was found in 18.9% (men—19.9% and women—17.8%). In the multiple regression analysis after adjusting for possible confounding factors, the mean VAI value showed a positive association with alcohol use (β = 0.020) and sedentary hours per week (β = 0.109) and a negative association with hours of activity per week (β = −0.102) and with the number of healthy lifestyles (β = −0.640). In the logistic regression analysis, after adjusting for possible confounding factors and compared to those classified as non-HVA, subjects classified as HVA were more likely to show MD adherence (OR = 0.571), do more than 26 h per week of physical activity (OR = 1.735), spend under 142 h per week being sedentary (OR = 1.696), and have more than two healthy lifestyles (OR = 1.877). Conclusion: The results of this study suggest that the more time spent doing physical activity and the less time spent in a sedentary state, the lower the vascular aging index and the greater the likelihood of being classified in the group of subjects with HVA. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue The Effect of Dietary Patterns and Lifestyle on Healthy Aging)

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