Anti-aging expert Ángel Durántez reveals the best diet for longevity.

Longevity is a topic that is very much at the forefront of the nutrition and medicine sectors in Spain. Numerous studies have been conducted to identify methods and keys to living longer and in good health. Many have highlighted nutrition as one of the factors to consider . In fact, experts like Dan Buettner have discussed which foods can help us extend our life expectancy, as well as physical exercise .

Dr. Ángel Durántez is one of the most respected longevity experts in Spain, author of the book Joven a los 100 (Young at 100) and has been included in Forbes magazine's list of the 100 best doctors in our nation. In an interview for the B3TTER podcast, he spoke about the most appropriate diet for living longer and with a lower risk of disease , highlighting one that is well-known in our country, especially for being varied, balanced, and where olive oil and proteins play a fundamental role.

Ángel Durántez: "The Mediterranean diet almost always wins."

According to Durántez, choosing the "perfect diet" is a complicated decision because, to find the answer, a long study would have to be conducted, involving many people and analyzing their behaviors over an extended period. Hence, in the nutrition and medical industries, "observational studies" are conducted , that is, examining the eating habits of different humans and studying which would be the best. The expert emphasizes that, in these cases, " the Mediterranean diet almost always wins."

"When all the observational studies look at who lives the longest and with the least disease, it's those on the Mediterranean diet ," continues the expert, who describes it as an "omnivorous diet, a diet where there's protein, vegetables, fruits, healthy fatty acids..."

But she makes it clear that, even though it's one of the most well-known, "it doesn't mean that there are studies on the ketogenic diet, the intermittent fasting diet, the fasting-mimicking diet (FMD), or the paleo diet with good results. They can be temporary in your life , you can do them for a while and have temporary results that are appropriate for one thing. But if we want to talk about the prototype diet, I would focus on the Mediterranean diet," she says. Even so, she mentions that "not all of us are good with the same diet," so she recommends that everyone find the one that best suits their needs.

Ángel Durántez isn't the only health expert who has mentioned the Mediterranean diet when discussing longevity. A renowned and respected American cardiologist also endorses it because it includes the consumption of foods such as oily fish and olive oil.

Separately, Frank B. Hu, professor of nutrition and epidemiology at Harvard's T.H. Chan School of Public Health, stated in an article in CNBC magazine that he would recommend a diet similar to the Mediterranean or Okinawa diet , which is widely followed in Japan . "These dietary patterns have been shown to reduce the risk of chronic diseases such as diabetes, cardiovascular disease, some types of cancer, and also the risk of dementia," the specialist told the outlet. He also advises consuming " whole, minimally processed foods , especially plant-based foods" and reducing "ultra-processed" foods.

References

Onque. R. Four simple ways to eat for longevity in the new year, according to a Harvard nutrition expert. CNBC (2024). https://www-cnbc-com.translate.goog/2024/01/06/harvard-expert-4-simple-ways-to-eat-for-longevity-in-2024.html?_x_tr_sl=en&_x_tr_tl=es&_x_tr_hl=es&_x_tr_pto=rq