Nutrition and longevity: how they impact each other

"The role of nutrition in prevention is crucial," Dr. Caccialanza says. "The worldwide literature at the level of epidemiological studies shows that following healthy eating patterns in line with the recommendation of the Mediterranean diet can reduce the incidence of mortality from cardiovascular and oncological diseases, which are the main causes of death.

Some British studies have shown that one can even think of a survival advantage of about 10 years, indicatively, between males and females. This is solid data showing that a healthy diet is of paramount importance in reducing mortality and staying healthy. All this would be possible by following simple behavioral rules.

However, our system is an obesogenic one: the rate of childhood obesity is constantly rising, the consumption of processed and fast-food foods full of chemical agents, preservatives, and fats is perennially on the rise. This also translates into higher rates of cancer incidence in youth populations."

A proper diet is based on adequate consumption of fruit, vegetables, legumes, whole grains and animal fat content and more, limiting simple sugars, sugary drinks and alcohol.

As the expert explains, "Proper nutrition enables the body to:

• maintain a better immunological set-up because the correlation between diet, nutritional status, and the immune system is very strong, allowing for a contained inflammatory set-up at the molecular level. The latter, if in excess and unbalanced, is a problem and is associated with worsening and dysfunction of the regulatory and immune systems. Thus, an increased susceptibility to cancer and cardiovascular disease is detected;
• maintain the development of the muscle component and a reduction in excess visceral fat/adipose, which is associated with an increased inflammatory situation and consequently an increased risk of the onset of vascular or metabolic diseases."

What is meant by proper nutrition

Proper nutrition consists of a balanced and varied diet. "More than avoiding foods such as meat and fish,"  the specialist specifies, "it is necessary to rely on: 

• quality;
• frequency of consumption. 

All while respecting sociality, tradition and the pleasure of food. The winning model is based on a consistent combination of proper nutrition with physical activity, as weight control, the first indicator, is associated with 2 factors: 

• what one consumes in protein, calories and nutrients through diet;
• what one consumes through physical activity."

In recent decades, however, there has been an upward trend in caloric consumption of about 250 Kcal more per day (every 7 days we eat an extra day!) and an increasingly sedentary society, starting with children and young people who are increasingly smartphone-addicted.

"Unfortunately, to date, this issue is still poorly understood and not well explored, so the spread of a culture of early nutrition education from the earliest grades of elementary school should be encouraged. There is a lack of attention to the issue that should instead be explored at all levels. There are increasingly sedentary jobs and less free time leading to an increase in the problem." 

"In the Lombardy Region, the TARSIN, a technical table on nutritional health and prevention, has been created," Dr. Caccialanza concludes. "For the first time in many years, a dialogue has begun with the clinical component. 

In fact, there are several initiatives that have sprung up, such as reevaluating the hospital catering guidelines, which suggest that the nutrition part is gaining more and more importance and relevance, and the prospects seem better than in the past. In fact, more sensitivity has arisen on the oncology part where initial guidelines in this field will be evaluated for the nutrition part."

Ospedale San Raffaele has always been a leader in the field of prevention and, for the past year, has launched Genos, a new Center for Personalized and Preventive Medicine: "Ambitious project, which aims to make the individual an active protagonist of his or her health precisely by starting with an awareness of one's lifestyle on which a health education program is established," says Dr. Federica Invernizzi, coordinator of the Center's internist team. 

Within this pathway, a fundamental role is given to the nutritional aspect: starting with a validated questionnaire, the degree of adherence to the Mediterranean diet is calculated and users are provided with tools to be able to follow a correct nutritional style with the aim of preventing many problems such as overweight, obesity, insulin resistance, and hypercholesterolemia.

For those interested in learning more about the topic or for those individuals deemed “at high risk” of problems related to unhealthy eating style, Ospedale San Raffaele provides a nutrition clinic dedicated to the prevention aspect.

In addition to this outpatient clinic, the Clinical Nutrition Area offers several dietary-nutritional counseling clinics divided by areas of expertise, such as:

• outpatient clinic dedicated to the metabolic area (obesity, overweight, diabetes, fatty liver);
• outpatient clinic dedicated to the allergology area (people with food allergies or intolerances)
• outpatient clinic of the oncological area with subdivision by anatomical districts (breast/gastroenteric/thoracic, etc...). 

Reservations are open to the public through the dedicated call center, and it is also San Raffaele's goal to offer a multidisciplinary approach, to make the patient feel valued as a whole, thanks to pathways that adhere to international scientific guidelines where clinicians refer the patient to the right clinic to build a personalized treatment plan.