Add years to your life by eating Mediterranean diet
By: Nikki Henderson
Updated: February 26, 2013
You may live longer if you eat a diet filled with nuts, olive oil and a little wine.
A recent study shows the Mediterranean diet could cut your risk of heart attacks and stroke by 30 percent. The diet includes mostly salad, fruit, vegetables, nuts, fish, lean meat, a small amount of cheese, olive oil and wine.
Spanish researchers followed more than followed 7,400 people between the ages of 55 and 80 who were all at high risk of heart disease.
Volunteers were either given supplies of extra virgin olive oil or mixed nuts.
After five years, researchers found that 58 people who followed a low-fat diet had strokes, but just 32 people had strokes if they ate a Mediterranean diet with nuts and 49 people had strokes if they ate a Mediterranean diet with extra-virgin olive oil.
Dr. Ramon Estruch of the Carlos III Health Institute in Barcelona said, "A Mediterranean diet supplemented with extra-virgin olive oil or nuts reduced the incidence of major cardiovascular events."
Researchers say olive oil contains monounsaturated fats which are better for artery health. Walnuts and fish are rich in omega-3 fatty acids which also have been shown to benefit heart health.
The findings were published in the New England Journal of Medicine.
