Fatty meat, processed products, sugar… Pro-inflammatory foods should be banned from our plates if we want to maintain good muscles with age, according to a nutritionist.
- As our muscles lose density and mass as we age, a new study suggests that avoiding pro-inflammatory foods helps take care of our muscle health as we age.
- We should therefore exclude fatty meats (beef, pork, lamb, etc.), ultra-processed products, sugary drinks, as well as coconut and palm oils from our plate. Foods that are among the most inflammatory for our intestines.
- Conversely, the consumption of white meat and fish, fruits and vegetables, whole grains, but also plant proteins such as soy, legumes and even oilseeds, is known to be very beneficial for muscle health, especially that of seniors.
It is inevitable, our muscles melt with age: from the age of 30, we lose mass and strength, and the process – called sarcopenia – accelerates from the age of 60, often with serious repercussions on daily life. (sedentary lifestyle, dependence, etc.).
If physical activity is known to prevent the effects of the years on our biceps, nutrition can also help: according to a recent article published in the journal Nutrientsskipping pro-inflammatory foods allows us to take care of our muscular health as we age.
Lower quality muscles due to an inflammatory diet
To arrive at this finding, the research team led by dietician Corey Linton, from the University of the Sunshine Coast in Australia, examined data from 200 adults aged 65 to 85 living in their own homes. Based on questionnaires, participants were asked to indicate the contents of their plate over a 24-hour period: vegetables and fruits, meats and fish, herbs and spices, raw and processed products, etc. The researchers then assessed their musculoskeletal health, grip strength (for example, hand strength), walking and gait, then scanned their bone density and body composition using a bone densitometry exam.
As a result, they discovered “links between symptoms of muscle degeneration and the level of pro-inflammatory foods in the diets of older people”, can we read in a communicated. So, “Participants with lower dietary inflammatory index scores had greater muscle mass and strength than those with higher levels of inflammation”. In other words, the fewer inflammatory foods we eat, the healthier our muscles stay.
For your muscles, avoid fatty meat, processed foods and sodas
But then, what foods are responsible for chronic inflammation in our intestines? Fatty meats (beef, pork, lamb, etc.), ultra-processed products, sugary drinks, as well as coconut and palm oils are foods that should absolutely be avoided from your menus, according to recent expertise. from a Harvard doctor.
Conversely, the consumption of white meat and fish, fruits and vegetables, whole grains, but also plant proteins such as soy, legumes and even oilseeds, is known to be very beneficial for muscle health, especially that of seniors.