A diet of vegetables and other healthy foods, along with regular physical activity, can be the key to middle-aged adults who achieve optimal cardiometabolic health later in life, according to new research from the Journal of the American Heart Association.
Cardiometabolic health risk factors include metabolic syndrome, a group of diseases that include excess fat around the waist, insulin resistance and high blood pressure. According to the study, the metabolic syndrome may increase the risk of developing heart disease, stroke and type 2 diabetes.
In the 2018 guidelines for physical activity for Americans and the dietary guidelines for 2015-2020 for Americans, it is noted that the middle years later in life provide the most favorable cardiometabolic health results. The physical activity guidelines recommend that adults achieve at least 150 minutes of moderate or 75 minutes of vigorous physical activity per week, such as walking or swimming. The dietary guidelines, updated in January 2021, provide suggestions for healthy eating patterns, nutritional goals, and dietary limits.
In an analysis of data from participants in the Framingham Heart Study, which began more than 70 years ago in Framingham, Massachusetts, investigators examined data from 2,379 adults, 18 years and older, and their compliance with the 2 guidelines. They noted that compliance with a combination of the two recommendations during middle age is associated with lower chances of metabolic syndrome and the development of serious health conditions as participants in their senior years in 2016 to 2019 studies, according to the study’s authors .
“Healthcare professionals can use these findings to further promote and emphasize the benefits of a healthy diet and a regular exercise schedule to their patients, to avoid the development of numerous chronic health conditions in the present and in later life,” said the author, Vanessa Xanthakis. , PhD, FAHA, Assistant Professor of Medicine and Biostatistics in the Division of Preventive Medicine and Epidemiology at Boston University School of Medicine in Boston, in a press release. “The earlier people make these lifestyle changes, the more likely they are to lower their risk of cardiovascular disease later in life.”
Study participants were selected from the third generation of the Framingham Heart Study. Participants were surveyed between 2008 and 2011, and the researchers assessed physical activity using a specialized device known as an omnidirectional accelerometer.
The device, which follows sedentary and physical activity, was worn on the participant’s hip for 8 days. The researchers also collected dietary information from the food frequency questionnaires to measure the types and levels of foods and nutrients.
In this analysis, the researchers noted that 28% among all participants complied with the recommendation of both the physical activity and the dietary guidelines, and that 47% achieved the recommendations in only one of the guidelines.
The researchers also noted that:
- Participants who followed the recommendations on physical activity alone had a 51% lower chance of metabolic syndrome.
- Participants who adhered to the dietary guidelines had a 33% lower chance.
- Participants who followed both guidelines had a 65% lower chance of developing metabolic syndrome.
“It is noteworthy that we observed a dose-response association of adherence to dietary and physical activity guidelines with the risk of cardiometabolic diseases later in life,” Xanthakis said in a press release. “Participants who adhered to the guidelines for physical activity gradually had a lower risk of cardiometabolic diseases as they increased adherence to the dietary guidelines.”
According to the authors of the study, the findings could not be generalized to people in other races or ethnic groups, as all the participants in the study were white adults. They added that additional studies with a multi-ethnic participant sample are needed.
REFERENCE
Exercise, healthy diet in middle age can prevent serious health conditions in senior years. American Heart Association. Published on March 31, 2021. Visited March 31, 2021. https://newsroom.heart.org/news/exercise-healthy-diet-in-midlife-may-prevent-serious-health-conditions-in-senior-years