277: Exploring the link between nutrition and health in later life

Studies have shown that around 20-30 per cent of how we age is down to our genetics, so how big a factor is what we eat in the remaining 70 per cent?

In this episode of the Food Matters Live Podcast, we explore the relationship between our diets and our health in later life.

Life expectancy has fallen in the UK very recently, largely down to the Coronavirus pandemic, but it had been rising consistently since the end of the Second World War.

And an ageing population can throw up a number of problems…

The UK Government’s Foresight report into the future of an ageing population points out that without significant improvements, ill-health, chronic conditions, and cognitive impairments will become more common.

The question for us is: can our diet help prevent these things?  And what can we learn from the food culture in places where people live the longest, healthiest lives?

As we grow older, our nutritional requirements change, so should our eating habits change too?

At what age do we need to start making changes? And when we're thinking about the foods we eat, should we be considering our healthspan as well as our lifespan?

Listen to the full episode to find out more about the nine hallmarks of ageing on a molecular level, how healthy ageing is defined, and the simple changes we could all be making to give us a chance of living a longer, healthier life.

We also ask if the food industry could be doing more to help an ageing population, and do it whilst still making a profit.

Rosie Martin, Registered Dietician and Founder of Rosemary Nutrition and Dietetics

Rosie is a UK registered dietitian working as Employee Health & Wellness Dietitian for her local NHS trust and as a plant-based specialist through her business Rosemary Nutrition & Dietetics.

She has worked with a wide variety of patients within NHS acute and community settings and has specialised in both gastroenterology and oncology. 

With a diagnosis of coeliac disease in her first year of life, Rosie has lived experience of the dramatic impact of food choices on health and wellbeing.

Having studied and experienced the benefits of plant-based nutrition, Rosie now works to support patients and clients to embrace a plant-based diet for disease management and prevention. 

Rosie is an advisory board member for Plant Based Health Professionals UK, and provides nutrition support for a range of clients, and businesses through her dietetic clinic, talks, workshops and article writing.