Healthy and Unhealthy Plant-Based Diets Pull Epigenetic Clocks in Opposite Directions, German Study Finds

A study by the German Center for Neurodegenerative Diseases (DZNE) has found that a diet rich in healthy plant foods is linked to slower biological aging, while a plant-based diet based on less healthy plant foods is associated with faster aging. The research, published in Nature Communications, analyzed data from over 6,000 adults and confirmed the results in over 1,000 participants from another study. The study used epigenetic clocks to estimate biological aging and found that diets high in healthier plant foods correlated with slower aging, while diets high in less healthy plant foods correlated with faster aging.

The study also found that different diets left different patterns on DNA, and that while there isn't one specific healthy diet, there are multiple diets that have a positive effect on slowing down the aging process. The authors noted that participants who ate healthily according to one standard were often not the same people who ate healthily according to another standard, and that there isn't a one-size-fits-all approach to healthy eating. Overall, the study highlights the importance of plant food quality in influencing biological aging and suggests that healthier plant-based diets may have a protective effect against aging.