This Carb Choice Could Shape How You Age

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A 30-year study of over 47,500 women found that high-quality carbs and fiber in midlife can increase your chances of aging well.

Investigators followed participants in the Nurses’ Health Study from January 1984 to December 2016 to see whether certain foods were connected with “healthy aging” — defined not just as avoiding diseases like cancer or heart problems but also maintaining strong physical and mental health and good cognitive function at age 70. Specifically, the team looked at whether dietary carbohydrate quality and carbohydrate types had an impact.

“Dietary carbohydrate quality is inversely associated with risks of chronic disease and all-cause mortality,” wrote lead investigator Andres V. Ardisson Korat, Sc.D., a research assistant professor at Tufts University School of Medicine and associated with the U.S. Department of Agriculture Human Nutrition Research Center on Aging. “However, limited evidence exists regarding the role of carbohydrate quality and dietary carbohydrate types in promoting healthy aging.”

All participants in the long-term study were under the age of 60 years at enrollment, and nutrient intake information was based on food frequency questionnaires. Investigators also looked at other factors that could impact aging, including physical activity, smoking status, alcohol intake, education, demographics and medical history, which they analyzed using biennial follow-up questionnaires.

The average age of patients in the beginning of the study was 48.5 years, and 7.8% met the definition of healthy aging. Approximately one-third of patients did not have any of the 11 chronic diseases included in the analysis, 48.8% did not have any memory impairments, and 38.3% were considered to have good mental health. The mean baseline total carbohydrate intake was 47%.

Over the 32-year follow-up period, the team uncovered a powerful link between the types of carbohydrates you eat in midlife and how well you age later in life.

Here’s what they found:

• Eating more high-quality carbs — including those found in whole grains, fruits, vegetables and legumes — was associated with a higher chance of healthy aging.
• Higher fiber intake, especially from plant sources, was also linked to better aging outcomes.
• Eating lots of refined carbohydrates, such as white bread or sugary snacks, was associated with lower odds of aging well.
• A higher glycemic index (which measures how quickly a food raises your blood sugar) and low fiber-to-carb ratios were also tied to worse health outcomes later in life.

What does this mean in simple terms? Choosing nutrient-rich, fiber-filled carbs over processed, sugary ones could boost your chances of staying healthy, active and mentally sharp as you grow older.

Practical tips from this research:

• Choose whole grains over white bread or pastries.
• Snack on fruits and vegetables instead of sugary treats.
• Add legumes like lentils, chickpeas or black beans to your meals.
• Make fiber-rich foods part of your everyday routine.

This study has several strengths that make its findings meaningful. First, it looked at women’s diets during midlife, which is a critical time when many long-term health conditions begin to develop. By following participants over many years, the investigators were able to see how midlife eating habits might impact health decades later, which helps avoid the risk that existing illnesses influenced diet. The study also included a large number of participants, had high follow-up rates and considered many different aspects of healthy aging.

However, like all research, this study had some limitations. Most of the participants were well-educated women who ate more high-quality carbs than the average American, so the results may not apply to everyone.