Consume carbs in moderation
IF YOU are looking forward to boosting your longevity, start consuming carbohydrates in moderation.
A new study has found that it is associated with lower risk of mortality.
The study found that diets – both low (less than 40% energy) and high (more than 70% energy) in carbohydrates – were linked with an increase in mortality, while moderate consumers of carbohydrates (50-55% of energy) had the lowest risk of mortality.
“These findings bring together several strands that have been controversial.
“Too much and too little carbohydrate can be harmful but what counts most is the type of fat, protein and carbohydrate,” said co-author Walter Willett, Professor at the Harvard TH Chan School of Public Health in Boston.
For the study, published in The Lancet Public Health journal, the team involved 15 428 adults aged between 45 and 64 years.
The researchers estimated that from the age of 50, the average life expectancy was an additional 33 years for those with moderate carbohydrate intake – four years longer than those with very low carbohydrate consumption (29 years), and one year longer compared to those with high carbohydrate consumption (32 years).
However, they highlight that since diets were only measured at the start of the trial and six years later, dietary patterns could change over 25 years.
The researchers also performed a meta-analysis of data from eight prospective cohorts, involving data from 432 179 people in North American, European and Asian countries. This revealed similar trends with participants whose overall diets were high and low in carbohydrates having a shorter life expectancy than those with moderate consumption.
It also showed that lowcarb diets that replace carbohydrates with proteins and fats from plant sources associated with lower risk of mortality compared to those that replace carbohydrates with proteins and fat from animal sources. – IANS