Healthy dietary patterns prolong life expectancy, regardless of longevity genes

19 February 2026

A study published in Science Advances examined whether five well‑known healthy dietary patterns are associated with lower mortality and longer life expectancy. The researchers used data from 103,649 UK Biobank participants who were followed for approximately 10.6 years. The dietary patterns studied were the Alternate Healthy Eating Index (AHEI), the Alternate Mediterranean Diet (AMED), the healthful Plant‑based Diet Index (hPDI), Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension (DASH), and the Diabetes Risk Reduction Diet (DRRD). All five diets were linked to reduced causes of mortality, such as cancer and respiratory disease, with DRRD showing the strongest results. Individuals following the highest‑quality versions of these diets lived significantly longer than those following the lowest‑quality versions. At age 45, men gained 1.9 to 3.0 additional years of life, and women gained 1.5 to 2.3 years.

Importantly, the study showed that the benefits of healthier diets were consistent regardless of genetic predisposition to shorter or longer life. High‑quality diets provided additional gains across all genetic groups, suggesting that genes did not diminish the impact of diet.

Overall, these findings highlight that adopting healthy dietary patterns can extend life expectancy and may offer a public health strategy that operates independently of genetic background.