A new study led by Immaculata De Vivo, an associate professor at Brigham and Women's Hospital in Boston and Harvard Medical School found that women who ate a mediterranean diet had longer telomeres. What does this mean? Basically it means that eating a mediterranean diet can lead to a longer life.
I did quite a bit of research on telomeres for my book, so I'm always interested when they come up in articles. Here is a part of the article.
"Telomeres are part of your chromosomes, the thread-like structures that house your DNA. At the end of these chromosomes are telomeres, a kind of protective "cap" that keeps the structure from unraveling. It thereby protects your genetic information.
Even in healthy people, telomeres shorten with age. Shorter telomeres are associated with aging, lower life expectancy and age-related diseases such as artherosclerosis, certain cancers and liver disease."
"This study's results provide "some insight into the underlying physiologic mechanism behind this association," indicating that greater adherence to this diet is significantly associated with longer telomeres, she says. Because of the antioxidant and anti-inflammatory effects of the Mediterranean diet, following this diet "could balance out the 'bad effects' of smoking and obesity," De Vivo says.
These findings further support "the health benefits of greater adherence to the Mediterranean diet for reduction of overall mortality, increased longevity and reduced incidence of chronic diseases, especially major cardiovascular diseases."
None of the individual dietary components was associated with telomere length. Researchers suggest that means the whole diet is an important element, rather than one item being a kind of superfood."
The full article and a video can be found here: http://www.ksl.com/?nid=1010&sid=32606031
