Small changes in eating habits can prolong life

 

Improving diet quality over at least 12 years is associated with lower death rates from cardiovascular disease and other causes, according to the study.

 

It's hard to keep food on track all the time, but making small improvements by choosing healthier foods from time to time can significantly increase your chances of living longer, according to an American study published on Wednesday.

The study, published in the New England Journal of Medicine, is the first to show that improving diet quality over at least 12 years is associated with lower mortality rates from cardiovascular disease and other causes.

Researchers at Harvard University tracked dietary changes in a population of nearly 74,000 health professionals who recorded their eating habits every four years.

Researchers used a diet quality score system to assess how much diets had improved.

For example, a 20% increase in scores could be "achieved by trading only a portion of red meat or processed for a daily portion of nuts or vegetables," according to the survey.

Over the 12-year period, those who ate a little better than at first - mostly consuming more whole grains, fruits, vegetables and fatty fish - had a risk of 8% to 17% lower than dying prematurely in the next 12 years.

Those whose diets worsened over time had a 6% to 12% increase in the risk of dying in the next 12 years of follow-up.

"Our findings highlight the long-term health benefits of improving diet quality, with an emphasis on general eating patterns rather than individual foods or nutrients," said study senior author Frank Hu, professor and chair of the study. Department of Nutrition, Harvard Chan School.

"A healthy eating pattern can be adopted according to people's food and cultural preferences and health conditions," he added. "There is no single diet for everyone."