Want to live to be 100? A Mediterranean Diet may be the key.

How it all began 

Dr Ancel Keys was an American scientist, born in 1904, who became interested in
the Mediterranean Diet. This was after he noticed that countries bordering the Mediterranean Sea had greater proportions of people living to be 100 years old.
He believed this was due to their diet and active lifestyles.
 
Dr Keys also compared the diets of seven countries across the world and discovered countries with higher intakes of animal-based foods (especially red meat) had higher rates of heart disease. Whereas countries with higher intakes of fish and plant-based foods had lower rates of heart disease.
 
Through his research, Dr Keys became one of the first to suggest that both the amount and type of fat in the diet was related with the risk of heart disease. The Mediterranean Diet was found to be high in unsaturated (healthy) fats and low in saturated (unhealthy) fats.
 
While many of his findings were groundbreaking, the concept of ‘good’ fats and ‘bad’ fats was not widely accepted for the next 20 years. This was due to a big push for ‘low fat diets’ around 1985.
 
However, eventually the Mediterranean Diet gained more momentum in the research community. Since then, research has found that a Mediterranean Diet can also:

• Reduce blood pressure and body weight
• Improve liver function from fatty liver disease
• Reduce fasting glucose levels, HbA1c and insulin resistance
• Lower rates or progression of Alzheimer’s disease

 What is the Mediterranean Style of eating?

 The Mediterranean Diet is the traditional diet of countries bordering the Mediterranean Sea including Greece, Italy and Spain.
Some key features of the Mediterranean diet include:

1. It is mostly plant-based 

The Mediterranean diet has a much higher ratio of plant-based foods compared to animal-based foods. The graph below shows how the Mediterranean Diet compares to the typical Australian diet. The Mediterranean diet includes at least 5 servings of vegetables each day and 2-3 servings of fruit. To eat this way, you need to eat about 1-2 handfuls of vegetables with every meal.

2. It contains a lot of olive oil 

In fact, it contains about 3-4 tablespoons olive oil per day! To meet this, you need to add about 1 tablespoon of olive oil to breakfast, lunch and dinner.   

3. There is very little red meat

Red meat is consumed less than once a week. Protein in the diet comes from fish and meat-alternatives such as chickpeas, lentils and kidney beans. Seafood is eaten twice a week, and chicken less frequently, about once or twice a week. 

4. Red wine is consumed often   

While the Mediterranean Diet does feature regular drinking of red wine, the amount at a time is low. The Mediterranean-style diet includes 1 small glass of red wine and only when having a meal.

Why is the Mediterranean Diet good for health?

 It’s important to remember that what makes a diet healthy or unhealthy is not one particular food, like olive oil or red wine. It is the combination of thefoods and the nutrients they provide. Some features of the Mediterranean Diet which make it healthy include:

• It contains wholefoods that are minimally processed and high in fibre.
• It is high in fresh fruit and vegetables which are nutritious and filling.
• It does not contain foods with high amounts of added salt, sugar or fat.   
• It is high in polyphenols. These are a type of antioxidant which help reduce inflammation and oxidative stress in the body.
• It is high in healthy fats and low in unhealthy fats.