Researchers have found that eating a Mediterranean diet could help keep the mind sharp and reduce frailty in old age.
Retired adults in five countries followed either a diet rich in healthy fats and fruit and vegetables or continued their normal diet for one year.
Researchers analysed stool samples and found the Mediterranean-style diet boosted bacteria in the gut. Some bacteria are linked to healthy ageing by staving off frailty and memory-loss, scientists say.
The study adds to mounting evidence finding the Mediterranean diet to be one of the healthiest in the world. The traditional Mediterranean diet includes lots of vegetables, fruits, beans, and wholegrains. It is also abundant in healthy fats like olive oil. It contains moderate amounts of fish, white meat and some dairy, and very little sugar and red meat.
According to studies experts from the UK, France, Italy, the Netherlands and Poland wanted to see if following a Mediterranean diet for a year could improve participants' microbiome.
The composition of our gut is partly determined by our genes but can also be influenced by lifestyle factors.
Interest in, and knowledge about, the microbiota has recently exploded as we now recognise just how essential they are to our health, affecting everything from mood to the development of serious disease.
Last year, scientists at California Institute of Technology found the first ever link between the gut and Parkinson's symptoms.
In this latest study, researchers asked half a group of 612 people aged between 65 and 79 to eat a Mediterranean diet. The other half stuck to their existing diet which varied according to each country. British people in the study were the least likely to naturally follow a Mediterranean diet, while those in Italy and France were the most.
The researchers said the most striking finding was how strong the link was between an improved gut environment and markers of ageing.
