Rebooting your health in 2021: A scientific guide

On average, Americans gain about one to two pounds between Christmas and New Year's. Already contending with the “Quarantine 15” and a year’s worth of stress eating, many of us are dreading a post-holiday diet in 2021.

While the wellness world suggests a sea of “body hacks” and food fads, dietary methods that are decades old may be the healthiest and tastiest — no calorie counting or total eliminations required.

Whether it’s a plant-heavy diet that delays the aging process and cuts the risk of death or a tasty Pesco-Mediterranean meal plan (rich in fruits, vegetables, and legumes) that can prevent or even reverse chronic diseases — evidence says modern tweaks on tried and true dietary traditions offer the best “science-based” strategies toward health and longevity in 2021.

In this episode of The Abstract, we explain why plant-based eating and “Pesco-Mediterranean” diets are sound strategies to improve health and longevity.

Our first story explores decades of research suggesting a “Pesco-Mediterranean” diet provides a game-changing path to longevity. With the most robust evidence for reducing the risk of heart attack, stroke, and premature mortality, researchers say this centuries-old dietary method is "ideal" for long-term health.

Our second story suggests eating a plant-heavy diet can significantly delay the aging process and stave off various illnesses. Proven to cut the risk of death by over 10 percent, studies show going plant-based can be a cost-effective approach to health that can help prevent age-related diseases and increase life expectancy.

Read the original Inverse stories:

• The best “science-based” approach to health is boosted by intermittent fasting
• One diet can cut the risk of death by over 10% — study

Where to find us:

• Subscribe to The Abstract wherever you listen to podcasts: iTunes | Spotify | TuneIn | RadioPublic | Stitcher
• Follow Ali Pattillo on Twitter
• We're hosted and produced by Tanya Bustos

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Right now, facts and science matter more than ever. That's part of the reason for The Abstract, this all-new podcast from the Inverse staff that focuses exclusively on science and innovation. Three new episodes are released a week, and each covers one theme via two related stories. Each features audio of original Inverse reporting, where the facts and context take center stage. It's hosted by the Tanya Bustos of WSJ Podcasts. Because we're Inverse, it's all true but slightly off-kilter. It's made for people who want to know the whole story. —Nick Lucchesi, executive editor, Inverse