Diet and disease
Javier Gómez Pavón, MD, head of geriatrics at Red Cross Hospital in Madrid and member of the leadership team of the Spanish Society of Geriatrics and Gerontology, told this news organization, “Currently, the evidence we have indicates that certain types of diet in population cohort studies are associated with a lower incidence and prevalence of certain diseases.”
Dr. Gómez mentioned contrasting examples. “The Mediterranean diet has been shown in different studies to be associated with a lower cardiovascular risk (stroke, ischemic heart disease, dyslipidemia) and a lower risk of cognitive impairment, especially due to its vascular component.”
Eating nuts (e.g., almonds, walnuts) is associated with a less dyslipidemia. A diet rich in fiber is also associated with less colonic digestive pathology, such as constipation and especially colon cancer. In addition, a diet low in fatty meats and rich in fruits and vegetables is associated with less prostate, breast, and colon disease. A diet with adequate protein intake is related to better muscle mass at all ages, and a diet rich in calcium products, such as nuts and dairy products, is linked to better bone mass and less osteoporosis and its consequences.
“At the moment, there is no study that links any type of diet with greater longevity, although in view of these data, it seems logical that a Mediterranean diet rich in fruits, vegetables, vegetables with proteins of animal origin, preferably fish or white meat, avoiding excess red meat and its calcium component in the form of nuts and dairy products would be associated with better disease-free aging,” said Dr. Gómez.
Aging indicators
The article expands the aging indicators from 9 to 12 (genomic instability, telomere wear, epigenetic alterations, loss of proteostasis, inactivated macroautophagy, dysregulation of nutrient sensing, mitochondrial dysfunction, cellular senescence, depletion of hematopoietic progenitor cells, alteration of intercellular communication, chronic inflammation, and imbalances in the microbiome), which are measurable processes that change with the aging of the organism and which, when manipulated experimentally, induce an acceleration or, on the contrary, an interruption, even a regression, of aging.
“Each of these indicators should be considered an entry point for future exploration of the aging process, as well as for the development of new antiaging drugs,” the researchers concluded.
A decade ago, it was recognized that telomere shortening was at the origin of age-related diseases, said Dr. Blasco. “It is now emphasized that the generation of mouse models with short telomeres has shown that telomeric wasting is at the origin of prevalent age-associated diseases, such as pulmonary and renal fibrosis.”
The recent study reviews new interventions to delay aging and age-related diseases that act on telomeres. “For example, the activation of telomerase through a gene therapy strategy has shown therapeutic effects in mouse models of pulmonary fibrosis and aplastic anemia,” Dr. Blasco added.
Food fact and fiction
Since diet is currently the most easily accessible element to slow down aging, Dr. Gómez refutes the most widespread myths that are circulating about food and longevity. First, regarding dairy products, it is said that yogurt is not useful for the elderly, since the elderly do not have adequate enzymes to digest yogurt and that it is only for children or young people who are growing. “It is not true. Dairy products are not important for their proteins but for their calcium and vitamin D content. [These are] fundamental elements at all ages, but especially in aging, where there is bone loss secondary to aging itself and an increased risk of osteoporosis and associated fractures. Especially in the elderly, the tragic hip fracture is associated with high morbidity and mortality.”
Another myth is that it is not good to eat fruit with meals. “Due to its rich content in antioxidants and vitamins, it is a fundamental food of the Mediterranean diet. Antioxidants of any type (nuts, vegetables, fruits, etc.) are undoubtedly the most important components against pathological aging (stroke, myocardial infarction, dementia, etc.). It may be true that they can be more easily digested if they are eaten outside of meals, but the important thing is that they be eaten whenever.”