The Best Anti Aging Foods I Enjoy Every Day (for food lovers)

The story behind this article

I volunteered at my son Finbar’s school canteen last week. I got chatting to another mom who was pregnant with her third. She joked about her husband being old at 34. I just smiled and said “yeah, so old.”

Meanwhile I am 53 and a half. I had my kids late. My first at 40, my second at 43 and a half.

So healthy aging is not some abstract idea for me. It is personal.

I want to be an active grandmother one day. Given I had my kids in my 40s, I need to still be going strong at 80 to get there.

Why anti-ageing foods are important

Longevity

A Harvard study published in 2024 followed 25,000 US women for 25 years. The women who closely followed a Mediterranean diet had up to a 23% lower risk of dying from any cause. They also had better heart health and lower cancer risk. (Harvard Health, 2024)

Brain health

A 10 year study of 14,000 people found that following the MIND diet, a close cousin of the Mediterranean diet, was linked to slower cognitive decline. (University of Cincinnati, 2024)

Muscle and strength

People eating more processed food had a 26% chance of developing sarcopenia, that muscle wasting that comes with age. People eating Mediterranean style had only 15%. (Longevity Check-up 7+ study, 2023)

Skin and beauty

Diets high in sugar and fried food speed up skin aging. More wrinkles. More whole food eating means less wrinkles, simple as that. (Dietary interventions in skin ageing: a systematic review and meta-analysis)

Mental health

This one matters just as much to me. I have 3 close family members who take medication for anxiety and depression. One study found a Mediterranean diet reduced depressive symptoms by 32% to 45%.

There is a whole new field now called nutritional psychiatry looking at exactly this link between gut health and mood. (Systematic review, 2025)

A separate Australian study of over 20,000 women found that more plant-based foods and fewer processed foods was linked to a reduced risk of anxiety symptoms. (Australian Longitudinal Study on Women’s Health, 2025)

What we eat touches everything.

Brain, muscle, skin, mood, longevity.

That is a pretty compelling reason to pay attention to including more of these anti aging foods on your plate.

9 anti aging foods I love eating every day

I don’t eat all these every single day, but most of them at least six days a week.

1. Yogurt.

I make this with cow’s milk and have it as my afternoon snack. It is a great source of probiotics, so it feeds the good bacteria in your gut.

Remember that gut health is linked to mood, inflammation and even how your brain works. Yogurt is one of the easiest and most delicious ways to support that.

And if you don’t do well with dairy there are lots of good alternatives.

2. Linseeds (flaxseeds).

These go on top of my yogurt.

The main reason I have them every day is the fiber. Which keeps us regular AND directly feeds the beneficial gut microbes so you get all the benefits of a healthier gut.

They also happen to have omega-3 fatty acids but for me it is really about the fiber.

3. Black pepper.

I put this on almost everything these days. It is really high in polyphenols, which are compounds that feed your good gut microbes.

The more polyphenols you eat, the happier your gut bacteria are. Healthier gut nugs are linked to better brain health, better mood, and lower inflammation.

4. Extra virgin olive oil.

There is strong evidence linking extra virin olive oil to both heart health and brain health.

I have some form of it most days, usually as a vinaigrette or a homemade mayonnaise.

5. Psyllium husks.

I started adding this anti aging food in about 12 months ago because I was getting a bit blocked up, and it sorted that out.

But fiber does more than keep you regular. It feeds the beneficial gut microbes that give all the benefits of gut health.

It’s also helpful for weight as well, because more of the calories you eat get passed through the gut rather than absorbed. And higher fiber intake increases your natural production of the satiety hormones. So it’s like free and natural GLP-1.

I am up to two tablespoons a day mixed with macadamia milk.

If you want to try it, start with just a teaspoon and drink a full glass of water with it, because too much fiber without enough water can cause blockages.

6. My fragrant sweet spice blend.

Coriander, cassia, cinnamon, nutmeg, allspice, ginger, poppy seeds, cloves, cardamom, rose petals. Like black pepper, different spices are high in polyphenols, so they are feeding your gut microbes too. I use this blend in my psyllium snac I mentioned above and in baking.

7. Vegetables, especially cruciferous veg.

Cauliflower, cabbage, broccoli. I have some sort of brassica at least once a day. These are loaded with fiber and micro nutritents that support gut health.

And as you now know gut health flows through to skin, brain, and mood too.

8. Protein.

Sardines are a favorite. They’re sustainable, low in mercury, high in omega-3s, and a great source of calcium, which matters hugely for bone health as we age.

Beyond that I have eggs, chicken, fish, tofu, and I am getting into tempeh, which is fermented tofu.

I also eat red meat a couple of times a week. I know the research is mixed on red meat, but for me, if I skip it, my iron drops and my energy noticeably suffers. I trust my body on that one.

Protein matters even more as we age too. Not getting enough of it is actually emerging as a risk factor for dementia.

9. Fermented vegetables.

I make my own sauerkraut, usually with red cabbage, though I ferment all sorts of vegetables. I have a little on the side with lunch and dinner.

These combined with the yogurt mean I’m getting around three serves of fermented food a day.

Fermented foods feed gut diversity by providing both live cultures AND food for your mirobes.

Gut diversity is one of the mechanisms behind so many of the benefits I mentioned earlier, from lower inflammation to better mood regulation.

The big mistake to avoid with anti ageing foods

Once you start looking at the research, it is tempting to think all or nothing.

Sugar bad, processed food bad, cut it all out.

Please do not do this.

There is nothing wrong with sugar.

It’s how much we are eating that determines whether it’s a problem.

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