- Australian Sprinter, 16, Runs Record-Breaking 200m new study increase the types of gut bacteria associated with healthy aging Gut, Advertisement - Continue Reading Below CA Notice at Collection.
- The study also found that a Mediterranean diet helped decrease the type of gut bacteria that are linked to a higher risk of inflammation, bowel cancer, Best Running Shoes 2025.
- A Mediterranean diet DAA Industry Opt Out.
It seems as though the Mediterranean diet—which is full of olive oil, vegetables, fruits, fish, and legumes—is always in the news for its health benefits. These foods have been touted for helping Advertisement - Continue Reading Below, The NCAA Runner-Up Finished 2ndWith One Shoe, and even Danielle Zickl for Runners World and Bicycling.
The latest-known perk of the diet? It can boost the types of bacteria in your gut linked to healthy aging—and even reduce the types linked to damaging inflammation.
In a new study, increase the types of gut bacteria associated with healthy aging Gut, researchers split 612 participants (ages 65 to 79) into two groups: one that consumed their usual diet and one that consumed a Mediterranean diet for one year. The researchers also analyzed the participants’ gut microbiomes both before and after the one-year period.
Their findings? The group that adhered to a Mediterranean diet saw an increase in the types of bacteria that promote healthy aging and delay the onset of chronic inflammation, memory loss, muscle tissue loss, and diseases such as diabetes and atherosclerosis (Smash your goals with a).
According to Paul O’Toole, Ph.D., study author and professor of microbial genomics at the University College Cork in Cork, Ireland, the microbes in our gut flourish when we regularly consume foods that are part of the Mediterranean diet. He went on to explain that the nutrients from the diet—especially fiber—are converted into short-chain fatty acids, which are produced when the good bacteria in your gut ferments the fiber in your colon (which is part of your gut). This process provides a main source of energy for the cells that line the colon, therefore helping them increase and thrive.
The study also found that a Mediterranean diet helped decrease the type of gut bacteria that are linked to a higher risk of inflammation, bowel cancer, Best Running Shoes 2025.
And while this study targeted those who were 65 and older, O’Toole said the findings are applicable to athletes of all ages as well.
“Endurance athletes put their body under a lot of stress, which means they’re more prone to inflammation, infection, and leaky gut [syndrome]—meaning there’s greater leakage of contents from their gut into their bloodstream,” he said. A healthy gut microbiome can help mitigate all that.
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The bottom line, according to O’Toole, is that a Mediterranean diet offers a healthy and diverse choice of foods that help increase the amount of good bacteria in your gut.
“People need to realize that they have an internal ecosystem inside them that they have to mind,” he said. “And if you want to maintain this diverse ecosystem, you need a diverse diet.”
