By Pablo
If there is one way of eating that is widely praised for its health benefits, it is the Mediterranean diet. Year after year it tops independent rankings of the best overall diets, recognised for supporting heart and brain health, healthy weight, and the prevention and control of diabetes.
A Mediterranean diet can help protect against heart disease, certain cancers, diabetes, and cognitive decline.
It may also be one of the keys to longevity. Long-term studies of older adults have found that those who follow a traditional Mediterranean diet closely tend to live longer than those who do not.
Both epidemiological and metabolic research suggest that people can benefit greatly by adopting elements of the Mediterranean way of eating. It is one of the best-studied, most evidence-based diets for preventing cardiovascular and other chronic diseases, and much of its strength seems to come from how its foods work together rather than from any single ingredient.
Its popularity keeps growing. In 1993 the Mediterranean Diet Pyramid was introduced by Oldways with the Harvard School of Public Health and the WHO as a healthier alternative to the original USDA food pyramid. Today chefs and home cooks alike are embracing Mediterranean ingredients and flavours, and new research continues to document its benefits.