Adopting a Healthy Diet Can Help You Live Another Decade

Adopting a healthy diet is something we all know will benefit our overall wellness.  We’re told to eat our veggies from an early age.  It’s no mystery that nutrients will help our bodies to function better.  That said, according to the results of recent research, even a few changes to your diet can help to add full years to your diet.  The sooner you begin, the bigger the impact it will have on your longevity.

Should You Be Adopting a Healthy Diet?

The answer to this question is relatively simple. If you haven’t already been working on adopting a healthy diet, then yes, it’s likely that your doctor would recommend that you begin now.  Of course, what that entails differs from one person to the next, but overall, it means that you’re eating lots of vegetables, fruits, whole grains, lean protein, and healthy fats.

The results of a recently published study showed that while people find that overhauling what they eat in an attempt toward adopting a healthy diet is overwhelming and difficult, certain smaller swaps and tweaks can make all the difference.  Even without turning their current nutrition on its head, the impact on longevity can be measurable – up to a decade!  The key is to start now and keep doing it.

Small Changes Can Make a Big Difference

Sustained small changes from what you currently eat to options that are a bit better can boost your longevity and wellness. Even if adopting a healthy diet from top to bottom seems like an impossibility to you, making a few strategic swaps that you’ll be able to keep up over time will increase your life expectancy.

The researchers found that some of the moves were as straightforward as cutting back on sugars.  One of the easiest places to do this is in sugary beverages. Since drinks don’t fill you up, replacing them with something less sugary, like club soda, water with lemon, or unsweetened tea, won’t leave you feeling any hungrier.  This makes the swap much simpler to keep up than trying to cut sugary foods.

Other changes can be as direct as simply opting for better quality versions of the foods we’re already eating.  If you like a dish, making it from scratch instead of regularly eating an instant, processed, just-add-water form of the meal can help to ensure that you’re getting the same delicious dish, but with greatly improved nutrition.

Similarly, eating the same foods but changing the preparation method can also go a long way. Placing broccoli or brussels sprouts on a cookie sheet with a bit of olive oil and parmesan cheese or garlic can be a delicious way to enjoy them without frying them or adding sugar (such a brown sugar or maple syrup) that can negate much of their nutritional benefits.