Wake Forest medical school study finds structured eating habits, exercise reduce frailty in older adults

Recommendations to eat healthy and exercise consistently in order to slow aging gained more backing from a study by researchers at Wake Forest University School of Medicine.

Researchers found those behaviors contributed to reducing frailty, which is strongly linked to risks such as chronic disease, disability and mortality.

The report represents the latest findings from The U.S. Study to Protect Brain Health Through Lifestyle Intervention to Reduce Risk - a two-year, multi-site and randomized clinical trial.

The findings are published in The Journals of Gerontology.

"These findings suggest that adopting accessible healthy behaviors may help slow important aspects of aging," said Mark Espeland, lead author and professor of gerontology and geriatrics and internal medicine at the medical school.

"We know exercising and eating right is going to improve our health, but making efforts to participate in programs that offer guidance and accountability could be especially effective at keeping us healthy as we age."

The study involves 2,111 adults between ages of 60 and 79 who were diagnosed at an increased risk for cognitive decline. Participating are five U.S. academic centers and health care systems.

The participants were split into two groups.

One group followed a structured program with coaching, goal setting and regular checks to incorporate healthy eating, regular exercise, along with brain-stimulating and social activities.

The other group followed a more self-guided approach to health.

Researchers determined those that followed the structured program experienced greater improvements in overall health and frailty compared to the other group.

While both groups improved their frailty scores, those that followed the structured program had greater improvement.

"This shows the benefits of taking a structured approach to a healthy lifestyle," Espeland said.

"We know exercising and eating right is going to improve our health, but making efforts to participate in programs that offer guidance and accountability could be especially effective at keeping us healthy as we age."

Although participants in the structured program also showed stronger gains in cognitive performance, researchers found that improvements in frailty alone did not fully explain the brain benefits found in the trial. They said that suggests multiple pathways to healthy aging.

"The results also add to growing evidence that targeting multiple areas of health at once, rather than focusing on a single behavior, may be the key to maintaining independence and quality of life later in life," Espeland said.

A related study released in July found that the structured program showed greater gains in global cognition.

Both interventions emphasized physical activity, nutrition, cognitive stimulation, social engagement and heart health monitoring. The structured program differed in its intensity, accountability and support.

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This story was originally published May 31, 2026 at 5:46 AM.