When it comes to healthy living, one can only get so far by using creams, lotions, serums, and masks. It’s true that real beauty comes from within, which is why we need to make sure that our diet is full of foods rich in antioxidants, water, essential nutrients, and healthy fats. In this blog post, we discuss the best foods for your anti-aging diet plan and how you can take the right path toward healthy aging.
What is an Anti-Aging Diet Plan?
An anti-aging diet plan is exactly as it sounds — it’s a way of eating that promotes youthfulness while slowing the aging process. This kind of diet can be achieved by eating foods with anti-aging properties, which include the following:
- Green tea
- Whole grains
- Dark chocolate
- Sweet potatoes
- Fruits
- Legumes
- Vegetables
- Lean proteins
- And more
These food items have been shown to support heart, brain, skin, and muscle health, helping to reduce fine lines, lower blood pressure, and decrease our risk for heart disease. On the other hand, sweets, soft drinks, fast foods, and processed foods can have compounding negative effects on our health as time goes on.
Using a wide range of superfoods is necessary to create a meal plan with all the essential nutrients your body needs to help it glow from the inside out. If you’re looking to improve your skin health, increase your energy levels, or achieve weight loss, a healthy diet is crucial. There are two highly recommended plans to try when you want to reach these goals: The DASH and Mediterranean diets.
These dietary plans are highly popular with dieticians and nutritionists because they’re rich in foods that contain healthy fats, important nutrients, and powerful antioxidants which contribute to a healthy body.
DASH Diet
Also known as Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension, the DASH diet was developed to help individuals with high blood pressure treat or manage their condition. This diet will typically include foods rich in calcium, magnesium, and potassium — specific nutrients that help to control high blood pressure. Moreover, this diet limits food items that have a high sodium content, along with added sugars and saturated fats.
Because DASH diets offer a well-balanced and flexible eating plan, it’s easy to adopt a healthy lifestyle and create healthy meals on a daily basis. This diet plan relies on fruits, vegetables, whole grains, and proteins — all of which can be easily found at the grocery store. Some food items you can opt for include:
- Black beans
- Fish
- Poultry
- Nuts
- Green leafy vegetables
- Acai berries
Be sure to limit full-fat dairy foods and fatty meats which are full of saturated fat.
Mediterranean Diet
The Mediterranean diet was developed based on foods traditionally eaten in countries throughout the Mediterranean Sea which includes Greece, Italy, Spain, and France. Scientists have found that people in these areas are healthier compared to others around the world, while also being at a lower risk of various chronic conditions. While there are no concrete rules or restrictions to this diet, there are food items that should be included in your anti-aging plan such as:
- Extra virgin olive oil
- Foods with unsaturated fat
- Leafy greens
- Fruits
- Legumes
- Seeds
- Nuts
Studies have shown that this anti-aging diet can help to achieve and manage your ideal weight, while preventing strokes, heart attacks, type 2 diabetes, and even premature death. Because of these reasons, experts will often suggest the Mediterranean diet for those who wish to prevent chronic disease and improve their overall health. To get the most out of this diet, processed foods, refined grains, and foods with added sugar should be avoided.
MIND Diet
A lesser-known diet meal plan known as the MIND diet (short for Mediterranean-DASH Intervention for Neurodegenerative Delay) was created specifically to protect brain health. Created through the combination of the DASH and the Mediterranean diets, the MIND diet aims to support cognitive function and combat cognitive decline. Research shows that consuming the 10 recommended anti-aging foods under the MIND diet can improve cognitive impairment and lower the risk for Alzheimer’s disease in older adults.
This plan recommends the following food items to be included in your eating plans to get the best results:
- Dark leafy greens once a day
- Berries twice a week
- Five servings of nuts each week
- Legumes or beans every two days
- Whole grains three times a day
- Two servings of poultry (should not be fried) per week
- One serving of fish (should not be fried) per week
- Substitute olive oil for butter and limit to one tablespoon per day
- Limit consumption of fried foods, fast foods, and cheese to less than once a week
- Limit consumption of pastries and sweets to less than five times a week
- Limit red meat consumption to three meals each week
- Limit red wine consumption to one glass a day
The Best Foods for Your Anti-Aging Diet Plan
If you’re looking to bring a variety of foods into your anti-aging diet plan, below is a list of all the different things you can include in your meals.
Foods Rich in Vitamin C
Individuals who have a higher intake of vitamin C won’t have dry skin and will display fewer wrinkles. This is because vitamin C is an antioxidant that can eliminate free radicals — unstable molecules in the body that damages skin cells. Aim to get 75 mg of vitamin C per day by drinking lemon juice and eating red pepper, along with broccoli, strawberries, tomatoes, melons, and kale.
Fatty Fish
Fish like salmon and tuna can provide you with a good dose of fatty acids such as omega-3 which can help to protect your skin from sun damage. Apart from the two types of fish already mentioned, you can also purchase herring, sardines, lake trout, and mackerel to slow the process of aging. But if you’re not a fan of fish, you can opt for flaxseeds, walnuts, pumpkin seeds, and canola oil for the same health benefits.
Lean Proteins
Women with a lower protein intake will tend to have more wrinkles — protein supports the production of collagen, which helps skin cells regenerate. When collagen breaks down, the skin will begin folding on itself, which creates lines and wrinkles. Egg whites, fish, and skinless chicken are good sources of protein; when looking for pork or beef options, choose low-fat cuts like round and loin.
Various Fruits and Vegetables
To get youthful-looking skin, you can’t ignore the power of fruits and vegetables — the bright-colored pigments found in these (along with spices and herbs), are known as carotenoids. These antioxidants reduce free radical damage, leading to younger-looking skin and slows the aging process. There are plenty of sources to choose from when you want to get healthy skin, which include the following in your anti-aging diet plan:
- Tomato paste and tomato sauce
- Cantaloupe
- Carrots
- Sweet potatoes
- Orange squash
- Kale
- Spinach
- Collard greens
- Avocado
- Sage
- Parsley
- Rosemary
- Coriander
Whole Grains
By replacing refined grains with whole grains, you will be able to reap many benefits. Because refined grains can increase insulin levels, you will be more susceptible to inflammation that can damage the skin. To get started, try substituting brown rice for white rice, and look for options high in selenium — this mineral can help to protect the skin from harmful UV rays. Other options rich in this mineral include:
- Barley
- Oatmeal
- Whole wheat
- Tuna
- Salmon
- Sardines
- Turkey
- Eggs
- Beef
- Brazil nuts
When looking to pack more of this mineral, be sure not to consume more than five servings per day. This will ensure that you have enough selenium in your system without the risk of weight gain through high-carb meals.
Slow the Signs of Aging with these Diet Plans
While some believe that calorie restriction is the most efficient way to slow aging, the diet plans discussed here are certainly a good choice for those looking to reverse aging through a natural process. These plans prove that we can’t underestimate the value of healthy food, even in an age where nutritional supplements promise to bring back the youth we once had. An anti-aging diet plan is the best ways to live a longer life and achieve better health — the good news is that you can get started on the path to good health today!
Sources
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