Strict Mediterranean diet offers big health boost

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Sticking to a Mediterranean diet high in fruits and vegetables, fish,

and healthy oils protects against cancer, heart disease and other

ailments. Researchers looked at more than 1.5 million people and found

substantial drops in cancer, Parkinson's and Alzheimer's diseases, and

heart disease deaths among those who followed the diet closely.

link:

http://www.reuters.com/article/healthNews/idUSLB73099820080911

text:

Strict Mediterranean diet offers big health boost

Thu Sep 11, 2008 7:40pm EDT

LONDON (Reuters) - Sticking strictly to a Mediterranean diet rich in

fruits and vegetables offers substantial protection against cancer,

heart disease and other major chronic illnesses, Italian researchers

said on Friday.

People who did this had a 9 percent drop in death from heart disease,

a 13 percent reduction in incidence of Parkinson's and Alzheimer's

disease and a 6 percent reduction in cancer compared to those who were

not as diligent, their study found.

" These results seem to be clinically relevant for public health,

particularly for encouraging a Mediterranean-like dietary pattern for

primary prevention of major chronic diseases, " wrote Francesco Sofi, a

clinical nutrition researcher, and colleagues at the University of

Florence.

The traditional Mediterranean diet is full of vegetables, fish and

healthy fats such as olive oil, and low in red meat, dairy products

and alcohol.

Sofi and his team reviewed 12 international studies which included

more than 1.5 million people whose eating habits and health were

tracked for follow-up periods of three to 18 years.

The researchers also developed an " adherence " score to rate how well

people followed the Mediterranean diet, a tool they said doctors could

use to help improve people's health and encourage them to eat better.

" The adherence score...could be an effective preventative tool for

reducing the risk of mortality and morbidity in the general

population, " they wrote.

(Reporting by Kahn, Editing by Mark Trevelyan)