Huge U.S. Study Confirms Health & Longevity Benefits of the Mediterranean Diet
We now have results of the first U.S. study on mortality and the Mediterranean dietary pattern. 380,000 people, aged 50-71, were surveyed on their dietary habits and scored on their conformity to the Mediterranean diet. They were visited again 10 years later. As you would expect, some of them died. 12,105 to be exact: 5985 from cancer, 3451 from cardiovascular disease, 2669 from other causes. However, the people with the highest adherence to the Mediterranean diet had better survival overall, and specifically better odds of avoiding death from cardiovascular disease and cancer. Compared to the people with low conformity to the Mediterranean diet, the high conformers were 15-20% less likely to die over the 10 years of the study. The study authors, funded by the National Institutes of Health, noted eight similar studies in Europe and one in Australia with similar results.
Once again, my promotion of the Mediterranean diet is vindicated by the scientific literature. I’m not aware of any other diet that can prove anywhere near this degree of health benefit. If you are, please share.