Eating flavonol-rich foods like blackberries and apples can prevent frailty

USA: A higher intake of plant-based foods that contain dietary compounds called flavanols was associated with lower odds of frailty onset, a recent study published in The American Journal of Clinical Nutrition has found. 

Foods like blackberries and apples that contain specific flavonoids called quercetin may be the most important for frailty prevention.

Approximately 10% to 15% of older adults experience frailty, a geriatric syndrome that leads to a greater risk of falls, fractures, disability, hospitalization, and mortality. Current dietary recommendations for frailty prevention primarily focus on protein intake. However, many other foods may have health benefits

“There may be some validity to the old saying, an apple a day keeps the doctor (or frailty) away,” said the authors. “Our findings suggest that for every 10 mg higher intake of flavonols per day, the odds of frailty were reduced by 20%. Individuals can easily consume 10 mg of flavonols daily since one medium-sized apple has about 10 mg.”

“Although there was no significant association between total flavonoid intake and frailty, higher flavonols intake (one of the subclasses of flavonoids) was associated with lower odds of developing frailty. Specifically, higher quercetin intake was the flavonoid with the strongest association with frailty prevention. This data suggests that there may be particular subclasses of flavonoids that have the most potential as a dietary strategy for frailty prevention,” said coauthor Shivani Sahni, PhD, of the Department of Medicine, Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, Harvard Medical School, and the Hinda and Arthur Marcus Institute for Aging Research, Hebrew SeniorLife; and Courtney L. Millar, PhD, of the Department of Medicine, Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, Harvard Medical School, and the Hinda and Arthur Marcus Institute for Aging Research, Hebrew SeniorLife.

The authors suggest that future research should focus on dietary interventions of flavonols or quercetin to treat frailty. Research is also needed on racially and ethnically diverse participants.

The findings were published in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition article, "Higher Intake Of Dietary Flavonols, Specifically Dietary Quercetin, Is Associated With Lower Odds Of Frailty Onset Over 12-Years Of Follow-Up Among Adults In The Framingham Heart Study.” This is one of the first community-based studies that comprehensively examined the role of dietary flavonoids in frailty prevention.

Reference:

Steven Oei, Courtney L. Millar, Thuy Nga Nguyen Lily, Kenneth J. Mukamal, Douglas P. Kiel, Lewis A. Lipsitz, Marian T. Hannan, Shivani Sahni, Higher intake of dietary flavonols, specifically dietary quercetin, is associated with lower odds of frailty onset over 12 years of follow-up among adults in the Framingham Heart Study, The American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, 2023, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ajcnut.2023.04.013.