Eat your legumes: How a healthier diet can add 10 or more years to your life
Opting for legumes and vegetables instead of red meat and processed foods can add years to your life span, according to the study published Tuesday in the journal PLOS Medicine.
A woman in her 60s who focuses on a healthier diet can increase her lifespan by eight years while a man at the same age can add nine years to his life, the study showed.
The study constructed a model of what would happen if participants replaced a "typical Western diet" that includes red meat and processed foods with a diet consisting of fruits and whole grains.
If a woman at the age of 20 adhered to the fruits and legumes diet, she'd add 10 years to her life. While a 20-year-old man on the same healthier diet could add 13 years to his life.
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Researchers from Norway created the study by using data from the Global Burden of Disease study, a database that tracks 286 causes of death, 369 diseases and injuries, and 87 risk factors in 204 countries and territories around the world.
"The notion that improving diet quality would reduce the risk of chronic disease and premature death is long-established, and it only stands to reason that less chronic disease and premature death means more life expectancy," Dr. David Katz, a specialist in preventive and lifestyle medicine and nutrition, told CNN.
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The study found the biggest impact on lifespan was in a diet of beans, peas and lentils, whole grains, walnuts, almonds, pecans and pistachios. A new report from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention showed sticking to a healthier diet is difficult for most Americans.
The CDC study found that just 12% of adults consume the recommended 1½ to 2 cups of fruit each day. While about 10% of Americans eat the recommended 2 to 3 cups of vegetables each day, including legumes.
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