In our study, we used data from 4,758 healthy adults from the 1999-2002 National Health and Nutrition Examination Surveys to examine the associations between evidence-based diet quality indices and leukocyte telomere length. Our study assessed the four most widely recognized and commonly used diet quality indices in nutritional epidemiology: the USDA-developed Healthy Eating Index-2010, the Alternate Healthy Eating Index-2010, the Mediterranean Diet Score, and the DASH diet score. Analyses were adjusted for sociodemographic and health variables known to influence dietary intake and cellular aging.

Inclusion Criteria:

• Ages 20 to 65 years
• No prior diagnosis of major chronic disease (coronary heart disease, angina, myocardial infarction, stroke, diabetes, congestive heart failure, and cancer)

Exclusion Criteria:

• Prior diagnosis of major chronic disease (coronary heart disease, angina, myocardial infarction, stroke, diabetes, congestive heart failure, and cancer)
• Younger than age 20 or older than age 65

The study population was comprised of 4,758 healthy adults, aged 20 to 65 years, who had complete dietary and leukocyte telomere length (LTL) data measured in 1999-2002 National Health and Nutrition Examination Surveys (NHANES), without a prior diagnosis of major chronic disease (coronary heart disease, angina, myocardial infarction, stroke, diabetes, congestive heart failure, and cancer).