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Vegetables and fruits and exercise are the key to a long life
Last reviewed: 01.07.2025
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Women over seventy who exercise regularly and eat the required amount of fruits and vegetables live longer than others, according to scientists from the University of Michigan and Johns Hopkins University (both in the USA).
The researchers examined 713 women aged 70 to 79 who were part of the Women's Health and Aging Studies project, which aimed to study the causes and course of physical disability in older women. Many previous studies have assessed the positive effect of exercise and healthy eating on life expectancy, but this is unique in that the researchers looked at both factors together for the first time.
To determine how much plant food the participants were consuming, the researchers measured the levels of carotenoids in their blood - healthy plant pigments that the body converts into antioxidants such as beta-carotene. The more fruits and vegetables a person eats, the more carotenoids they have in their blood.
The subjects' physical activity was assessed using a questionnaire that asked for the amount of time spent on various levels of physical activity. This data was then converted into calories burned. 53% of the participants did not do any exercise, 21% were moderately active, and the remaining 26% were very active. During the five-year follow-up, 11.5% of the subjects died.
Blood carotenoid levels were 12% higher in those who were alive at the end of the study and whose total physical activity was more than twice as high. Women in the most physically active group were 71% less likely to die over five years than the least active, and those with the highest carotenoid levels were 46% less likely. Thus, physical activity levels combined with total blood carotenoid levels predicted longer life.