DR DAVE GLASS: Lifestyle Medicine – Is it ever too late to change your diet or lifestyle?
Why wait for some benefits at that late stage of your life, instead of living life in full vitality now.
It is common for young people to feel invincible. The possibilities of disease and death seem remote. This is why youthfulness is often associated with risk taking, manifest in extreme sports, abuse of recreational drugs, reckless driving – or unhealthy lifestyles. If it tastes good and feels good now, it must be good – no matter the long term consequences.
Unfortunately, sooner or later the ‘chickens come home to roost’ in the form of high blood pressure, diabetes, heart disease, or cancer. Many people may feel powerless to change the course of their lives. Some may put it down to genetics or culture.
I recently came across an article published earlier this year by Dr Fadnes and co in PLoS Medical Journal, entitled “Estimating the impact of food choices on life expectancy”.
It was an analysis of a 2019 study called “The Global Burden of Disease”, which covered 195 countries.
In this study Fadness and team compared outcomes from people eating the typical western diet (TW) rich in refined foods, fast foods, and animal products; with an optimised diet (OD) high in fruits, vegetables, legumes, whole grains and some fish and nuts, and low in red and processed meats, sugar sweetened beverages and refined grains.
Those who at the age of 20 years adopted the OD increased life expectancy by 10,7 years for women and 13 years for men, compared to those who continued the TW diet.
At age 60 years, a change from TW to the OD increased life expectancy for women by 8,0 years and for men by 8,8 years.
But, astonishingly, even for those who switched from the typical western diet to an optimised diet at 80 years of age saw an increased life expectancy of 3,4 years for both women and men.
Who could have imagined that making changes in diet at such a late stage could have benefits?
Dr Khaligi, a geriatrician from University of California, recommends an exercise programme for seniors as well.
The benefits include reduction in risk of multiple types of cancer, heart disease, stroke, high blood pressure, diabetes, depression, osteoporosis, dementia and, in fact, all-cause mortality.
Of course, the younger you start, the greater the benefits.
You may think “Well, if I can still benefit from changing my lifestyle at 80, I will just continue enjoying myself now, and change later!”
Of course it is your choice. But why wait for some benefits at that late stage of your life, instead of living life in full vitality already now.
And, you may just save yourself, and your family, a whole lot of trouble avoiding a long list of ills.
Dr Dave Glass
MBChB, FCOG(SA), DipIBLM
