Scandinavian scientists have confirmed poor diets – high amounts of fast food, processed meat and sugar-sweetened beverages, but low amounts of fruit and vegetables – may contribute to accelerated biological ageing, even in young adults in their early 20s.
The new study by researchers at Finland’s Jyvaskyla and Helsinki Universities, published in the Journal of Clinical Nutrition, involved 826 young adults and also reported diets that include abundant fruits and vegetables and little processed red meat and sodas may be associated with slower biological ageing.
Biological ageing – how ‘well’ someone is ageing (rather than counting calendar years) – is measured by GrimAge (estimates difference between chronological and biological age to estimate the ‘acceleration’ of ageing and predict life span) and DunedinPACE (provides the ‘pace’ of ageing by estimating how many biological years pass per year of chronological age).
While most previous studies have focused on middle-aged or older adults, the latest research focuses on young adults aged 21-25. ‘While chronic diet-associated conditions, like type 2 diabetes or obesity, often take decades to develop, they start in young adulthood’, noted medicalnewstoday.com.
Study co-author Dr Suvi Ravi commented: ‘The findings are consistent with studies conducted in middle-aged and older populations, as well as with the few studies that have been carried out in younger individuals.’
He also revealed: ‘Our research group is now investigating how different environmental exposures are associated with biological ageing.’
