A major new study in Nature Medicine offers one of the clearest pictures yet of how long-term dietary choices shape not just how long we live but how well we age. Researchers followed over 100,000 American health professionals - both women and men - for up to 30 years, analysing their eating habits and how these related to "healthy aging": living to at least 70 without major chronic diseases or serious declines in physical, mental or cognitive health.
As ever, please talk to your doctor or medical practitioner most familiar with your medical history before implementing any changes in diet, exercise or lifestyle, especially if you are under treatment. Links to this and other studies at bottom of page.
The Study Findings
Only 9.3% of participants achieved this high bar for healthy aging. But those who consistently followed recognised healthy dietary patterns - like the Alternative Healthy Eating Index (AHEI), DASH, Mediterranean, and MIND diets - were significantly more likely to reach this goal. For example, people in the highest adherence group for the AHEI had 86% higher odds of healthy aging compared to those in the lowest group. The Mediterranean and DASH diets followed closely, with benefits of 62% and 59% respectively. Even the MIND diet, which combines elements of the Mediterranean and DASH diets, was linked to a 46% greater chance of aging healthily.
These odds were not just statistical quirks - they translated into meaningful differences in real outcomes. For physical function, those following the AHEI had 130% higher odds of maintaining their abilities in later life. For mental health, the same group had 103% better odds, and for avoiding chronic diseases, 75% higher odds. Perhaps most compelling: individuals adhering to the Planetary Health Diet had more than double the odds of surviving to age 70 compared to those with the poorest dietary scores.
All the beneficial diets shared common features: higher intake of fruits, vegetables, whole grains, nuts, legumes, unsaturated fats (like olive oil) and low-fat dairy; and lower intake of trans fats, sodium, sugary drinks, and red or processed meats. Conversely, people with the highest intake of ultra-processed foods were 32% less likely to age healthily.
Interestingly, while plant-based diets generally performed well, those that allowed for moderate, healthy amounts of animal products - such as fish or low-fat dairy- often showed stronger results than strictly plant-based diets.
For instance, the healthful plant-based diet (hPDI) was associated with a 45% increase in healthy aging odds, but this was the weakest link among the diets studied.
A higher intake of unsaturated fats - particularly from plant oils like olive oil and other seed oils - was linked to better odds of healthy aging, including improved cognitive and physical function. In contrast, saturated fats were not associated with these benefits and were typically limited in the highest-scoring diets.
The study found that fast and fried foods were positively associated (!) with surviving to the age of 70, though not with other markers of healthy aging like cognitive or physical function. This unexpected result may reflect social or behavioural patterns - such as the role of eating out in maintaining social connections - which are themselves linked to longevity. However, the researchers caution that this doesn’t imply such foods promote health; they remain associated with chronic disease risk, and the overall evidence still supports limiting fried and highly processed foods for long-term well-being.
The study’s strength lies in its size, length, and nuanced approach. It accounted for other lifestyle factors like exercise, smoking and BMI, showing that diet alone had a strong independent impact. Women tended to benefit more than men, and the diets were particularly effective among people with lower activity levels or higher body weights - suggesting that it's never too late to make a difference through food.
Final Thoughts
This research strengthens the case for adopting diets rich in whole, minimally processed plant foods, while allowing for modest amounts of healthy animal-based options. Rather than focusing on single “superfoods” it is the long-term pattern that matters most. And while the research focused on Western eating patterns, that does not preclude healthy Asian eating patterns from delivering similar beneficial results. Whether you're just starting out or fine-tuning your habits, these findings suggest that what’s on your plate today could help shape how well you live tomorrow.
What healthy foods can you add to your diet - snack by snack or meal by meal - on a daily or weekly basis?
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Stay Healthy,
Alastair
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Studies and Resources
The study in review... Tessier, AJ., Wang, F., Korat, A.A. et al. Optimal dietary patterns for healthy aging. Nat Med (2025). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41591-025-03570-5
What is... the Planetary Health Diet
Other
Anindita Tasnim Onni, Rajiv Balakrishna, Matteo Perillo, Marco Amato, Elaheh Javadi Arjmand, Lise M. Thomassen, Antonello Lorenzini, Lars T. Fadnes, Umbrella review of systematic reviews and meta-analyses on consumption of different food groups and risk of all-cause mortality, Advances in Nutrition, 2025, 100393, ISSN 2161-8313, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.advnut.2025.100393.
Heianza Y, Zhou T, Sun D, Hu FB, Qi L. Healthful plant-based dietary patterns, genetic risk of obesity, and cardiovascular risk in the UK biobank study. Clin Nutr. 2021 Jul;40(7):4694-4701. doi: 10.1016/j.clnu.2021.06.018. Epub 2021 Jun 24. PMID: 34237696; PMCID: PMC8338907.
Björnwall A, Mattsson Sydner Y, Koochek A, Neuman N. Eating Alone or Together among Community-Living Older People-A Scoping Review. Int J Environ Res Public Health. 2021 Mar 27;18(7):3495. doi: 10.3390/ijerph18073495. PMID: 33801775; PMCID: PMC8036467.
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