70 Can a Wholefood Plant-based Diet Affect Healthy Ageing?

Background This study sought to examine existing evidence regards the effects of a wholefood plant-based diet on healthy ageing. As of March 2018 the average life expectancy in Ireland was 81.4 years, ten years above the global average. However approximately 1 million people suffer from chronic disease with 64.8% of people over 65 living with co-morbidity (TILDA 2014). The prevention and treatment of these diseases is central to the healthy ageing of our population. Methods This systematic review of the literature explored diet, health, ageing and disease. A scoping search, with relevant key words, was followed by an in-depth search with reference to a pre-ordained search syntax template. Specific eligibility criteria, determined by a PICOSS system were applied to the results. All included studies underwent quality assessment in line with the critical appraisal checklist for cross sectional studies. Extracted data was displayed in table format initially and then explained through narrative synthesis. Results A large body of evidence was found to suggest that cardiovascular disease, metabolic disorders and inflammatory conditions improved with a wholefood plant-based diet. Evidence in relation to certain cancers was present but not conclusive. Breast cancer was the exception to this. Evidentiary support, for reductions in BMI and in the need for polypharmacy were also found. Conclusion More research is needed into the benefits of a wholefood plant-based Diet. However as this diet is a low cost, low risk intervention it could be applied beneficially in the interim. Ageing was found to be a life-wide, life–long process so the research concluded that this diet could provide benefit to all. “The side effects of a plant-based diet could be the elimination of the need to take drugs, and further research is needed to find ways to make Plant-Based Diet the new normal” Tuso, et al (2013).