It’s long been considered one of the healthiest ways of living, but new research confirms that a fruit, vegetable, nut and oil-rich Mediterranean diet could indeed reduce the risk of heart attack.
According to first-of-its-kind UK research by the Medical Research Council Epidemiology Unit at the University of Cambridge, researchers found that healthy individuals with greater adherence to the Mediterranean style diet had 6-16 per cent lower risk of future cardiovascular disease compared to those who did not.
Mediterranean diets are high in fruit, vegetables, whole grains, nuts and olive oil, low in red meat and moderate in dairy, fish, poultry and wine.
For the study, researchers collected data from 23,902 initially healthy Britons, with participants’ diets measured using food frequency questionnaires and followed up for an average of 12 to 17 years to investigate the association between adherence to the Mediterranean diet and the occurrence of new-onset CVD and deaths during that time.
Dr Nita Forouhi, lead author of the study, said: “We estimate that one in 25 of all new cardiovascular disease cases or one in eight cardiovascular deaths in our UK-based study population could potentially be avoided if this population increased their adherence to the Mediterranean diet.
“Encouraging greater adoption of the Mediterranean diet looks like a promising component of a of a wider strategy to help prevent cardiovascular disease, including other important factors such as not smoking and maintaining a healthy weight, blood cholesterol and blood pressure.”
