A study shows that even a delayed adoption of a healthier diet can help
, by Apostolos Magkoulias, 1 min reading time
, by Apostolos Magkoulias, 1 min reading time
A study shows that even a delayed adoption of a healthier diet can help
Researchers have found that adopting a high-quality diet, even at a very advanced age, such as Mediterranean diet, can reduce fat in the liver and abdomen, reducing the risk of certain inflammatory and heart conditions.
A recent 20-year obesity study on dietary quality in adulthood suggests that maintaining a high-quality diet at an older age can help eliminate metabolic problems.
The study, involving 2,000 people worldwide, was conducted by researchers at the Cancer Center of the University of Hawaii, the Department of Preventive Medicine of the University of Southern California and the Department of Radiology and Biomedical Imaging of the University of California.
Participants aged 45 to 75 were selected from the beginning of the study. The researchers excluded all potential BMI (Body Mass Index) participants impressively out of the optimal range, smokers and those suffering from diseases or taking medications that could affect their fat levels.
Participants were required to complete questionnaires on their daily dietary habits based on popular dietary indexes. This included providing researchers with information on daily consumption of food and drink, including fruit, raw grain vegetables, and alcohol. They were also asked to provide details of their physical activity levels.
Participants had to undergo X-ray energy absorption X-ray and X-ray magnetic resonance imaging to accurately estimate visceral lipid resistance levels and non-alcoholic fatty liver. Fat accumulation in visceral adipose tissue and the presence of non-alcoholic fatty liver were targeted as these properties have been shown to generate negative metabolic effects on the human body causing inflammation and cardiovascular problems.
The study concluded that participants with better quality nutritional measures during the study period had lower levels of fat balance, indicating that there is a strong correlation between diet quality and visceral adipose tissue growth.
In particular, the effects of the Mediterranean diet were found to be inversely by excess body weight and a greater waist circumference than optimal.