Another Study Confirms Mediterranean Diet BenefitsIn another study touting the benefits of a Mediterranean style diet a Greek researcher found that such a diet was positively correlated with a longer lifespan. The study involved nearly 75,000 Europeans, who were queried on diet, lifestyle, medical history, smoking and physical activity. The high levels of anti-oxidents in the Mediterranean diet was cited as the most likely reason for the life extending effect, along with the reduction in saturated fats, meats and dairy products. In a study of nearly 75 000 Europeans aged 60 and above, the diet based on plenty of fruits, vegetables, legumes, grains, fish and olive oil was linked to a longer life expectancy. As with any correlative study, this is more suggestive than it is strong evidence. Other factors could be at play here. Nor is it very helpful to say maybe anti-oxidents or reduced fat played a role ... A Mediterranean diet is described as being based on plenty of fruits, vegetables, legumes, grains, fish and olive oil. I'd think the frequent uses of tomato sauces by Italians would be beneficial, but the study's author cites Greek and Spanish diets as being the most typical. Other factors were looked at, but the news report fails to mention if any of these were correlated with longer life -- one would certainly expect smoking to have a negative correlation. What about exercise? Lifestyle is a rather vague term that begs definition. Like most media reports, this news release is weak on details. |
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