Mediterranean Diet Increases Longevity

The Mediterranean Diet may be linked to longevity – Researchers working for the European Prospective Investigation into Cancer and Nutrition recently analyzed the lives and diets of Greek participants , including 23,349 men who had never been diagnosed with cancer, heart disease or diabetes.

Following them for 8 ½ years the researchers were able to determine which elements of their diets are linked to the longevity trend that is emerging in the Mediterranean.

The study ranked each participant according to a predetermined measurement, dubbed the Mediterranean Diet Score. Amongst participants with lower scores there were more deaths over the 8.5 years than those with higher scores.

What is important to the Mediterranean Diet?

• Moderate alcohol consumption
• Low consumption of meat products
• High vegetable consumption
• High fruit consumption
• More non-saturated fat than saturated fat
• High consumption of fruits and nuts
• High legume consumption (beans and peas)