Health
Healthy eating in middle age has this key longevity benefit
Adopting healthy eating habits during middle age boosts the likelihood of healthy aging.
That’s according to a new study from the Harvard T.C. Chan School of Public Health, which found that a “moderate intake of healthy, animal-based foods” and a “lower intake of ultraprocessed foods” could increase the chances of reaching age 70 with good “cognitive, physical and mental health” and no major diseases.
Researchers from the University of Copenhagen and the University of Montreal also contributed to the study, which was published in the journal Nature Medicine.
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“Studies have previously investigated dietary patterns in the context of specific diseases or how long people live. Ours takes a multifaceted view, asking, how does diet impact people’s ability to live independently and enjoy a good quality of life as they age?” said co-corresponding author Frank Hu, Fredrick J. Stare Professor of Nutrition and Epidemiology and chair of the Department of Nutrition at Harvard Chan School, in a Harvard press release.
Adopting healthy eating habits during middle age boosts the likelihood of healthy aging, a new study found. (iStock)
The researchers analyzed diet and health data for more than 105,000 women and men aged 39 to 69 over a 30-year period, drawn from the Nurses’ Health Study and the Health Professionals Follow-Up Study.
Based on the participants’ self-reported diets, they were given scores for eight different healthy eating plans based on their intake of fruits, vegetables, whole grains, unsaturated fats, nuts and legumes, as well as some healthy animal-based foods, including fish and certain dairy products, the release stated.
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They also investigated the participants’ consumption of ultraprocessed foods containing added sugars, sodium and unhealthy fats.
The diet with the most benefits for healthy aging was the Alternative Healthy Eating Index (AHEI), the researchers found, which was linked to an 86% greater likelihood of healthy aging at 70 years old.
The diet with the most benefits for healthy aging was the Alternative Healthy Eating Index (AHEI), which was linked to an 86% greater likelihood of healthy aging at 70 years old. (iStock)
This diet is rich in fruits, vegetables, whole grains, nuts, legumes and healthy fats, with limited amounts of red and processed meats, sugar-sweetened beverages, sodium and refined grains, the release stated.
Participants who ate more processed foods had less likelihood of healthy aging, with processed meat and sugary or diet beverages named as the biggest culprits.
“There is no one-size-fits-all diet. Healthy diets can be adapted to fit individual needs and preferences.”
“Our findings suggest that dietary patterns rich in plant-based foods, with moderate inclusion of healthy, animal-based foods, may promote overall healthy aging and help shape future dietary guidelines,” said co-corresponding author Marta Guasch-Ferré, associate professor in the Department of Public Health at the University of Copenhagen and adjunct associate professor of nutrition at Harvard Chan School, in the release.
“Our findings suggest that dietary patterns rich in plant-based foods, with moderate inclusion of healthy, animal-based foods, may promote overall healthy aging and help shape future dietary guidelines,” the researchers said. (iStock)
“Our findings also show that there is no one-size-fits-all diet. Healthy diets can be adapted to fit individual needs and preferences,” added lead author Anne-Julie Tessier, assistant professor in the Department of Nutrition at the University of Montreal and researcher at the Montreal Heart Institute.
Sherry Coleman Collins, a food allergy dietitian and expert from the Atlanta metropolitan area, was not involved in the study but reviewed the findings.
“This data helps emphasize the importance of how we eat throughout life, in particular at midlife, on our ability to remain healthy and strong into our golden years,” she told Fox News Digital.
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“Since the majority of healthcare dollars are spent at the end of our life, this has huge implications on the potential to save money on costly interventions, as well as improving quality of life throughout the lifespan.”
Most of the beneficial diets in the study were primarily plant-based, Collins noted.
Participants who ate more processed foods had less likelihood of healthy aging, with processed meat and sugary or diet beverages named as the biggest culprits. (iStock)
“They aren’t all vegetarian or vegan, but they all include an eating pattern made up of primarily fruits, vegetables, whole grains, foods high in unsaturated fats, beans, legumes, nuts and seeds.”
She agreed, however, that there is no one-size-fits-all diet, and that people can be healthy by eating many different types of diets.
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“The most health-promoting diets all exclude or only include small amounts of high-fat, high-sugar, high-salt, ultraprocessed foods,” she said.
The study did have some limitations, the researchers acknowledged — chiefly that it was limited to only health professionals.
Some of the beneficial diets included healthy animal-based foods, including fish and certain dairy products. (iStock)
Further studies are needed to confirm the findings with more diverse populations, they said.
The Nurses’ Health Study and Health Professionals Follow-Up Study were supported by the National Institutes of Health (NIH).
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Other support was received from the Canadian Institutes of Health Research Postdoctoral Fellowship Award, the United States Department of Agriculture, the National Center for Advancing Translational Sciences, the National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases, and the Novo Nordisk Foundation, the release stated.
Fox News Digital reached out to the researchers for comment.
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Weight-loss medications and bariatric surgery have both been found effective at helping people shed excess pounds — and now a new study explores their link to obesity-related cancer (ORC) risk.
Obesity is a known risk factor for certain types of cancers, and has also been shown to impact cancer survival.
Obesity-related cancers include multiple myeloma, meningioma, adenocarcinoma of esophagus; stomach, colorectal, liver or bile duct, gallbladder, pancreas, uterus, ovary, renal-cell kidney, thyroid, and postmenopausal breast cancer, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).
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Researchers at Clalit Health Services in Tel Aviv, Israel, conducted an observational study of the medical records of 6,356 participants aged 24 and older who had obesity and diabetes, with no history of obesity-related cancer.
Between 2010 and 2018, half of the participants took GLP-1 receptor agonists (GLP-1 RAs) — injectable medications for obesity and type 2 diabetes — with at least six drug purchases within 12 months. The other half underwent bariatric metabolic surgery (BMS).
Obesity is a known risk factor for certain types of cancers, and has also been shown to impact cancer survival. (iStock)
Overall, the study determined that “the direct effect of GLP1-RAs compared to BMS on the risk for ORC beyond their effects on weight-loss is estimated as 41% relative risk reduction.”
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The findings were published in the journal eClinicalMedicine.
“The results point at the existence of additional pathways beyond weight loss in which GLP-1RAs contribute to the decreased risk of obesity-related cancer,” lead study author Yael Wolff Sagy, PhD, head of research at Clalit Health Services, told Fox News Digital.
How do GLP-1 RAs affect cancer risk?
Niketa Patel, professor of molecular medicine with the USF Health Morsani College of Medicine in Tampa, Florida, noted that obesity is associated with chronic inflammation.
“GLP1-RAs are shown to reduce inflammation and thus decrease the risk of developing ORC,” she told Fox News Digital. (Patel was not involved in the study.)
“The anti-inflammatory properties of these medications address a known risk factor for various cancers.”
“Bottom line: Obesity can cause certain cancers, and treatment of obesity with GLP1-RA reduces the risk of only obesity-related cancers.”
Dr. Britta Reierson, MD, medical director of knownwell, a provider of metabolic health services, said there are several ways in which GLP-1 RAs could have cancer mitigation properties.
“First, the anti-inflammatory properties of these medications address a known risk factor for various cancers,” the Minnesota-based doctor, who also was not part of the research, told Fox News Digital.
Overall, the study determined that “the direct effect of GLP1-RAs compared to BMS on the risk for ORC beyond their effects on weight-loss is estimated as 41% relative risk reduction.” (iStock)
“Second, the metabolic regulation and improvement in metabolic health from these medications, including lowering blood glucose levels and decreasing insulin resistance, can reduce cancer risk.”
Emerging evidence also suggests that GLP-1 RAs may have direct anti-tumor effects, Reierson noted — “potentially through modulation of immune responses and epigenetic changes (changes that occur to gene expression and are passed down to future generations).”
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Research suggests that GLP-1 medications help reduce inflammation not just through weight loss, but also in other organs of the body, such as the heart, according to Dr. Susan Savery, MD, a board-certified obesity medicine and primary care physician with PlushCare, a virtual health platform offering primary care, therapy and weight management services.
“Over time, chronic inflammation can be a risk factor for cancer development, as it may damage cell DNA,” San Francisco-based Savery, who was not involved in the study, told Fox News Digital.
“The metabolic regulation and improvement in metabolic health from these medications, including lowering blood glucose levels and decreasing insulin resistance, can reduce cancer risk.” (iStock)
“Our fat cells (adipose tissue) naturally produce inflammatory cells, and GLP-1 medications, similar to bariatric surgery, help reduce this inflammation by decreasing the amount of adipose tissue through weight loss.”
Potential limitations
The study did have some limitations, the researchers acknowledged.
“First, it is an observational study. It means that our comparison groups (persons who had surgery versus those who received GLP1-RAs) may still have some residual differences, despite our methodological efforts,” Sagy told Fox News Digital.
“However, only this type of real-life observational study can provide the long follow-up period that is necessary to evaluate the risk of developing cancer, which often has very long latency periods.”
Another limitation is that the primary drug included in the study was liraglutide (Saxenda, Victoza), with smaller numbers of people taking exenatide (Byetta) and dulaglutide (Trulicity).
While GLP-1 RAs are “wonderful tools” that can support people on weight-loss journeys, Savery pointed out that maintaining a healthy lifestyle through nutritious eating and regular physical activity is “the foundation for cancer prevention and better overall health.” (iStock)
“It will be important to evaluate the comparative effectiveness of the newer GLP1-RA drugs, which are expected to have a larger effect,” Sagy said.
“Although the direction of the results is promising, we should wait and see if and how clinical guidelines will consider it.”
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Reierson agreed that much more research is needed before GLP-1 RAs could ever be considered as cancer prevention options.
“Larger, randomized, controlled trials are necessary to confirm the observed effects and better understand the underlying mechanisms,” she said.
“It will also be important to investigate the impact of GLP-1 RAs on different types of cancer and assess the long-term safety and potential side effects of using GLP-1 RAs as a cancer therapy.” (American Cancer Society/Getty Images)
“It will also be important to investigate the impact of GLP-1 RAs on different types of cancer and assess the long-term safety and potential side effects of using GLP-1 RAs as a cancer therapy.”
Savery agrees that it’s likely too early to predict FDA approval for cancer therapy, but noted that “weight reduction plays an important role in cancer prevention, and GLP-1s seem to offer an additional benefit through inflammation reduction.”
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While GLP-1 RAs are “wonderful tools” that can support people on weight-loss journeys, Savery pointed out that maintaining a healthy lifestyle through nutritious eating and regular physical activity is “the foundation for cancer prevention and better overall health.”
President Trump has long railed against drug traffickers. He has said they should be given the death penalty “for their heinous acts.” On the first day of his second term, he signed an executive order listing cartels as “terrorist organizations.”
But many public health and addiction experts fear that his budget proposals and other actions effectively punish people who use drugs and struggle with addiction.
The Trump administration has vowed to reduce overdose deaths, one of the country’s deadliest public health crises, by emphasizing law enforcement, border patrols and tariffs against China and Mexico to keep out fentanyl and other dangerous drugs. But it is also seeking huge cuts to programs that reduce drug demand.
The budget it submitted to Congress this month seeks to eliminate more than a billion dollars for national and regional treatment and prevention services. The primary federal agency addressing drug use, the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, has so far lost about half its workers to layoffs under the Trump administration and is slated to be collapsed into the new Administration for a Healthy America, whose purview will reach far beyond mental illness and drug use.
And if reductions to Medicaid being discussed by Republicans in Congress are realized, millions of Americans will be unable to continue, much less start treatment.
The White House did not respond to requests for comment. The budget itself says that ending drug trafficking “starts with secure borders and a commitment to law and order” and that it is cutting addiction services deemed duplicative or “too small to have a national impact.”
Those cuts are agonizing, public health experts say, because they come just as the country is making sustained progress in lowering the number of fentanyl deaths. Many interventions may be contributing to that progress, including greater availability of the overdose reversal spray naloxone; more treatment beds, sober housing and peer counseling; and declines in the strength and quantity of the illicit drug supply, they say. But studies so far have not demonstrated convincingly which of those factors merit greater focus and investment.
“It would be a tragedy if we defund these programs without fully understanding what’s working and then our overdose rate starts to climb again,” said Dr. Matthew Christiansen, an addiction medicine physician in Huntington, W.Va., a city once labeled ground zero for the opioid crisis.
A letter signed by more than 320 behavioral medicine academic experts, sent Monday to congressional leaders, decried the cuts, including those to “community-based naloxone distribution, peer outreach programs, drug-use-related infectious disease prevention programs and drug test strip programs.”
The president’s budget calls for ending grants for “harm reduction,” a strategy to prevent disease transmission and keep drug users alive that has become largely accepted by mainstream addiction treatment providers.
The budget derides federal financial support for “dangerous activities billed as ‘harm reduction,’ which included funding ‘safe smoking kits and supplies’ and ‘syringes’ for drug users.”
That language is a callback to false reports in 2022 that a $30 million federal harm reduction grant could be used to purchase pipes for smoking crack and meth. In fact, a small portion of that grant, designated for “safer smoking kits,” was for supplies like alcohol swabs and lip balm. The grant also supported programs in states that permit sterile syringe exchanges, effective in reducing hepatitis C and H.I.V. infection rates.
“You can’t just tell people to stop using drugs with a snap of the fingers,” said Dr. Christiansen, a former director of West Virginia’s drug control policy. “These are tools to reduce the harm of opioids while also helping them be successful long-term.”
According to the federal agency’s annual survey of substance use, in 2023, 27.2 million Americans ages 12 or older had a drug use disorder, 28.9 million had alcohol use disorder, and 7.5 million had both.
The budget does leave intact block grants for states to combat addiction and mental illness. But without the agency’s additional grants, hands-on training and monitoring, in addition to possible Medicaid reductions, states will not be able to afford the many medical and social services required to prevent and treat addiction, Dr. Christiansen said.
David Herzberg, a professor of drug policy and history at the University at Buffalo, said that Mr. Trump’s almost single-minded linking of the nation’s drug problems with border issues harks back to late 19th-century America, when the government associated opium dens with Chinese immigrants. Fearing the incursion of Chinese workers and inflamed by press reports of Chinese men using opium to lure young white women into prostitution, Congress severely restricted Chinese immigration.
Then as now, Mr. Herzberg said, political conservatives found that targeting foreign drug suppliers was a muscular means of advancing broader agendas.
In contrast with highly publicized drug seizures, people who chronically use drugs have become afterthoughts, usually visible only as street irritants, their addiction perceived to be the result of their own choices, he said. Elected leaders who advocate for their welfare risk being tarred as soft on crime.
“If politicians are going to stick their necks out for them, I would be shocked,” Mr. Herzberg said.
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