Mediterranean Diet Linked to Slower Biological Aging and Reduced Smoking Impact, Study Finds
A cross-sectional study involving 928 participants from the Airwave Health Monitoring Study investigated the relationship between adherence to the Mediterranean Diet (MedDiet), smoking, and epigenetic age acceleration. Researchers utilized 'epigenetic clocks,' tools that estimate biological aging by analyzing chemical changes in DNA, to determine if participants appeared biologically younger or older than their chronological age. The study found that greater adherence to the MedDiet was associated with lower epigenetic age acceleration, suggesting a slower biological aging profile. Conversely, smoking was strongly linked to accelerated epigenetic aging. Interestingly, among current smokers, those with higher adherence to the MedDiet, particularly consuming more fruits, vegetables, and whole grains, showed lower smoking-related age acceleration. These findings indicate that dietary patterns may influence molecular markers of biological aging and could be associated with differences in the biological impact ...