Adherence to Mediterranean-style diet may prevent frailty, study finds

A brand new study printed in The American Journal of Clinical Nutrition discovered that consuming a Mediterranean-style diet may prevent frailty. Defined as a recognizable state of elevated vulnerability ensuing from a decline in operate throughout a number of physiological methods, frailty impacts 10-15% older adults, and leads to different well being points. Although the final advantages of a Mediterranean-style diet are well-known, its position within the discount of frailty in older Americans who don’t usually eat such a diet was unclear.

The study titled, “Adherence to the Mediterranean-style diet and high intake of total carotenoids reduces the odds of frailty over 11 years in older adults: Results from the Framingham Offspring Study,” confirmed that consuming a Mediterranean-style diet, may prevent the event of frailty with ageing. The study included 2,384 non-frail adults from the Framingham Offspring Study with Mediterranean-style dietary sample rating and antioxidant intakes [vitamin C, E, and total carotenoids] estimated from a meals frequency questionnaire mixed with frailty assessments that had been performed over ~11 years. Each unit greater rating on the Mediterranean Style Dietary Pattern Score (i.e., greater adherence to a Mediterranean-style diet) diminished the percentages of frailty by 3%.

The study additionally decided whether or not particular antioxidants (carotenoids, nutritional vitamins E, and C) present in a Mediterranean-style diet are associated with frailty. Higher consumption of carotenoids (an antioxidant generally present in brightly coloured fruit and veggies) had the strongest affiliation with diminished chance of frailty improvement in middle-aged and older women and men from the Framingham Heart Study, reporting that every 10-mg greater complete carotenoid consumption diminished the percentages of frailty by 16%. Vitamin E and C weren’t meaningfully related to frailty prevention.

Courtney L Millar, Ph.D., Post-Doctoral Fellow, Marcus Institute of Aging Research, Hebrew SeniorLife, and Harvard Medical School, is the lead creator. “People may be able to prevent frailty by following the principles of the Mediterranean-style diet,” Dr. Millar stated.

The Mediterranean-style diet encourages consumptions of fruit and veggies.

Increasing the consumption of brightly coloured fruit and veggies which can be wealthy in carotenoids in addition to different bioactive compounds may finally have an effect on the well being of older adults.”

Dr. Shivani Sahni, senior creator

The Framingham Heart Study, Boston University, and Tufts University collaborated on this observational study. This study was funded by the National Institute on Aging’s assist of the Boston Claude D. Pepper Center OAIC and the Peter and Barbara Sidel Fund.