The #1 Diet To Look and Feel Younger Than Your Age, Dietitian Says
Reaching "the best version of yourself" status is a positive feeling, accomplishment, and gift of self-care like no other. Who deserves to reach that level of wellness and youthfulness more than you? We're here to help you get started with the #1 diet to look and feel younger than your age, according to an expert.
The old saying "you are what you eat" may be a very accurate thing, according to research performed by Texas A&M University's School of Public Health. Matthew Lee Smith, associate professor in the Department of Environmental and Occupational Health and one of the researchers on the study explained, "This [study] reinforces many of the public health concepts related to nutrition and health," adding, "Gut microbiome may be influencing the way you are, not just the way you are today. These findings are more suggestive than definitive, but they have contributed to our understanding of what gut health can do and how it makes people feel." Hence, what you eat plays a huge role in your overall existence.
The group observed the connection between the gut microbiome and four separate "personality traits," including mental fatigue, mental energy, physical fatigue, and physical energy. The study revealed that metabolome and bacteria affiliated with metabolism fall under either physical or mental energy. And bacteria that have to do with inflammation, for instance, are related to physical or mental fatigue.
"What you eat determines the bacteria and the microbiome in your gut," pointed out Ali Boolani, associate professor in the Department of Physical Therapy at Clarkson University and lead study author. "With this study, we have made an exploratory link between a person's microbiome and their mood." The study is proof that what you consume impacts your well-being. It's essential to make wise food choices that will result in a healthy look and youthful feeling!
The #1 diet to look and feel younger than your age is the Mediterranean Diet.
We reached out to Lauren Manaker, MS, RDN, LD, CLEC, an award-winning registered dietitian, book author, and recipe developer for the best foods to eat and their benefits. Manaker shares, "The #1 diet to look and feel younger than your age is the Mediterranean Diet. While this diet isn't known to make people look and feel younger, thanks to the antioxidants that this diet fuels, an unintentional side effect of following it may be better-looking skin and more youthful feelings." So get ready for beautiful, healthy skin and an overall healthier you!
According to Dr. Chaitanya Koneru, a primary care physician with Baylor St. Luke's Medical Group, the Mediterranean diet helps your body in many ways (via St. Luke's Health). This includes keeping your blood sugar levels at bay and limiting your risk of diabetes. The diet also decreases fasting blood sugar levels and improves long-term sugar maintenance, thereby reducing insulin resistance.
Dr. Koneru explained, "It is not primarily a weight loss diet, but it is a healthy diet that prevents heart disease and early death," adding, "The amount of health benefits that can be gained by switching to a Mediterranean diet, as well as the many diseases that can be prevented because of the switch, causes many physicians, such as myself, to accept the diet."
You benefit from these magical antioxidants by consuming whole grains, seeds, nuts, vegetables, and fruits, in addition to other food items in this particular diet. "They can offer unique benefits by combating oxidative stress, which can, in turn, help keep skin looking healthy and help maintain certain aspects of our health," Manaker explains.
