Adopting a healthy lifestyle can have longlasting benefits

There’s never a bad time to start a healthy lifestyle—and the younger the better.

Children who start eating a healthy diet and regularly exercise can see benefits years later, say researchers from the University of Eastern Finland.

Some of the changes lasted up to eight years, according to analysis of molecules that were assessed using the latest screening technology.  Metabolites, molecules associated with digestion and the break down of food, were transformed after changes to diet and exercise levels.  Eighty of the metabolites were linked to critical processes that include lipid metabolism, inflammation and gut health.

Seventeen of the metabolites were still showing improvements eight years later, although most were displaying changes for just two years.

Overall, these early-year changes reduce the risk for chronic diseases such as type 2 diabetes and heart problems, said Timo Lakka, one of the researchers.

The study is part of the PANIC (Physical Activity and Nutrition in Children) trial.

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