Category Archives: Health Benefits

March 16, 2011 · 2:00 AM

Mediterranean Diet Linked to Lower Childhood Asthma

Researchers note lower risk of asthma symptoms in Greek 10- to 12-year-olds following a traditional Mediterranean diet, according to a recent Journal of the American Dietetic Association.

I reported in 2008 on a Portuguese study that found much improved control of adult asthma in those eating a Mediterranean diet.  Why, I even seem to recall a study that found a lower incidence of asthma in children of mothers who ate Mediterranean-style.

If you’re an overweight adult with asthma, why not look into the Sonoma Diet by Connie Guttersen, or my Advanced Mediterranean Diet?  People with diabetes or prediabetes may do better with the Low-Carb Mediterranean Diet.

Steve Parker, M.D.

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January 5, 2011 · 2:00 AM

Mediterranean Diet Prevents Middle-Age Weight Gain? Yeah, Right…

Several mainstream media sources recently touted the Mediterranean diet as an effective method for prevention of the expected middle-age weight gain.  Reuters is one source, for example.  Men on the Mediterranean diet gained 2 lb (about a kilogram) less than other men over six years.  Mediterranean-dieting women gained weight too, but a whole 0.77 lb (0.35 kg) less than others.

Big whoop.

The media attention was based on a Spanish study of over 10,000 men and women university graduates over the course of six years.  Average baseline age was 38.  A Mediterranean diet score was calculated based on a food frequency questionnaire given only at the start of the study.  Adherence with a Mediterranean-style diet was judged for each individual as either low, medium, or high.

You’d think this research report would tell you how much weight these folks gained on average over six years, and how manypounds less if one followed the Mediterranean diet.  Think again.  No such luck, which reminds me of one of my favorite aphorisms: “eschew obfuscation.”

I had to do my own calculations based on Table 3.  And I still don’t know how much the average person in this cohort gained over six years.

I am a die-hard Mediterranean diet advocate.  It’s linked to myriad health benefits.  I’d love to believe it prevents middle-age weight gain.  But the results of this study are so modest as to be almost nonexistent.

Steve Parker, M.D.

Reference:  Beunza, J., et al.  Adherence to the Mediterranean diet, long-term weight change, and incident overweight  or obesity: The Seguimiento Universidad de Navarra (SUN) cohort.  American Journal of Clinical Nutrition.  doi: 10.3945/ajcn.2010.29764

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January 3, 2011 · 2:00 AM

Mediterranean Diet Prevents Diabetes – Again

Spanish researchers report that the Mediterranean diet reduced the risk of developing diabetes by 50% in middle-aged and older Spaniards, compared with a low-fat diet. 

Over 400 people participated in a trial comparing two Mediterranean diets and a low-fat diet.  Over the course of four years, 10 or 11% of the Mediterraneans developed type 2 diabetes, compared to 18% of the low-fatters.  One of the Mediterranean diets favored olive oil, the other promoted nut consumption.

We’ve seen previously that the Mediterranean diet prevents diabetes—not all cases, of course—in folks who have had a heart attack.  It also reduced the risk of diabetes in younger, generally healthy people in Spain.

So What?

The study at hand is not ground-breaking.  It enhances the body of evidence that the Mediterranean diet is one of the healthiest around.  I suppose another way to look at this study would be to say that the low-fat diet caused diabetes.

Learn how to move your diet in a Mediterranean direction at Oldways or the Advanced Mediterranean Diet website. 

Diabetics and prediabetics should consider the Low-Carb Mediterranean Diet; otherwise look into the Advanced Mediterranean Diet if you need to lose weight.

Steve Parker, M.D.

Reference:  Salas-Salvado, Jordi, et al.  Reduction in the incidence of type 2 diabetes with the Mediterranean diet: Results of the PREDIMED-Reus Nutrition Intervention Randomized Trial.  Diabetes Care, epub ahead of print, October 7, 2010.  doi: 10.2337/dc150-1288

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December 10, 2010 · 2:00 AM

Heart Patients, Listen Up: Mediterranean Diet to the Rescue

The Mediterranean diet preserves heart muscle performance and reduces future heart disease events, according to Greek researchers reporting in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, May 19, 2010. 

Reuters and other news services have covered the story.

The Mediterranean diet is well-established as an eating pattern that reduces the risk of death or illness related to cardiovascular disease—mostly heart attacks and strokes.  Most of the studies in support of the heart-healthy diet looked at development of disease in general populations.  The study at hand examined whether the diet had any effect on patients with known heart disease, which has not been studied much.

How Was the Study Done? 

 The study population was 1,000 consecutive patients admitted with heart disease to a Greek hospital between 2006 and 2009.  In this context, heart disease refers to a first or recurrent heart attack (70-80% of participants) or unstable angina pectoris.  Acute heart attacks and unstable angina are “acute coronary syndromes.”  Average age was 64.  Sixty percent had a prior diagnosis of cardiovascular disease (coronary heart disease or stroke).  Thirty percent had diabetes.  At the time of hospitalization, half had diminished function of the main heart pumping chamber (the left ventricle), half had normal pump function.  Men totalled 788; women 212.

On the third hospital day, participants were given a 75-item food frequency questionnaire asking about consumption over the prior year.  If a potential enrollee died in the first two hospital days, he was not included in the study.  A Mediterranean diet score was calculated to determine adherence to the Mediterranean diet.  Mediterranean diet items were nonrefined cereals and products, fruits, nuts, vegetables, potatoes, dairy products, fish and seafood, poultry, red meats and meat products, olive oil, and alcohol. 

Left ventricle function was determined by echocardiogram (ultrasound) at the time of study entry, at the time of hospital discharge, and three months after discharge.  Systolic dysfunction was defined as an ejection fraction of under 40%.  [Normal is 65%: when the left ventricle is full of blood, and then squeezes on that blood to pump it into the aorta, 65% of the blood squirts out.]

Participants were then divided into two groups: preserved (normal) systolic left ventricular function, or diminished left ventricular function. 

They were followed over the next two years, with attention to cardiovascular disease events (not clearly defined in the article, but I assume including heart attacks, strokes, unstable angina, coronary revascularization, heart failure, arrhythmia, and death from heart disease or stroke.

Results

  • Four percent of participants died during the initial hospitalization.
  • At the three month follow-up visit, those with greater adherence to the Mediterranean diet (a high Mediterranean diet score) had higher left ventricular performance (P=0.02).
  • At the time of hospital admission, higher ejection fractions were associated with greater adherence to the Mediterranean diet (P<0.001).
  • Those who developed diminished left ventricular dysfunction had a lower Mediterranean diet score (P<0.001)
  • During the hospital stay, those in the highest third of Mediterranean diet score had lower in-hospital deaths (compared with the lower third scores) (P=0.009).
  • Among those who survived the initial hospitalization, there was no differences in fatal cardiovascular outcomes based on Mediterranean diet score.
  • Food-specific analysis tended to favor better cardiovascular health (at two-year follow-up) for those with higher “vegetable and salad”  and nut consumption.  No significant effect was found for other components of the Mediterranean diet score.
  • Of those in the highest third of Mediterranean adherence, 75% had avoided additional fatal and nonfatal cardiovasclar disease events as measured at two years.  Of those in the lowest third of Mediterranean diet score, only 53% avoided additional cardiovascular disease events.   

The Authors’ Conclusion

Greater adherence to the Mediterranean diet seems to preserve left ventricular systolic function and is associated with better long-term prognosis of patients who have had an acute coronary syndrome.

My Comments

I agree with the authors’ conclusion.

We’re assuming these patients didn’t change their way of eating after the initial hospitalization.  We don’t know that.  No information is given regarding dietary instruction of these patients while they were hospitalized.  In the U.S., such instruction is usually given, and it varies quite a bit.

In this study, lower risk of cardiovascular death was linked to the Mediterranean diet only during the initial hospital stay.  Most experts on the Mediterranean diet would have predicted lower cardiovascular death rates over the subsequent two years.  Mysteriously, the authors don’t bother to discuss this finding.

For those who don’t enjoy red wine or other alcoholic beverages, this study suggests that the Mediterranean diet may be just as heart-healthy without  alcohol.  A 2009 study by Trichopoulou et al suggests otherwise.

Steve Parker, M.D.

Reference: Chrysohoou, C., et al.  The Mediterranean diet contributes to the preservation of left ventricular systolic function and to the long-term favorable prognosis of patients who have had an acute coronary event.  American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, May 10, 2010.  doi:10.3945/ajcn.2009.28982

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November 10, 2010 · 11:46 PM

Health Benefits of the Mediterranean Diet

The enduring popularity of the Mediterranean diet is attributable to three things:

1.       Taste

2.       Variety

3.       Health benefits

For our purposes today, I use “diet” to refer to the usual food and drink of a person, not a weight-loss program.

The scientist most responsible for the popularity of the diet, Ancel Keys, thought the heart-healthy aspects of the diet related to low saturated fat consumption.  He also thought the lower blood cholesterol levels in Mediterranean populations (at least Italy and Greece) had something to do with it, too.  Dietary saturated fat does tend to raise cholesterol levels.

Even if Keys was wrong about saturated fat and cholesterol levels being positively associated with heart disease, numerous studies (involving eight countries on three continents) strongly suggest that the Mediterranean diet is one of the healthiest around.  See References below for the most recent studies.

Relatively strong evidence supports the Mediterranean diet’s association with:

■ increased lifespan

■ lower rates of cardiovascular disease such as heart attacks and strokes

■ lower rates of cancer (prostate, breast, uterus, colon)

■ lower rates of dementia

■ lower incidence of type 2 diabetes

Weaker supporting evidence links the Mediterranean diet with:

■ slowed progression of dementia

■ prevention of cutaneous melanoma

■ lower severity of type 2 diabetes, as judged by diabetic drug usage and fasting blood sugars

■ less risk of developing obesity

■ better blood pressure control in the elderly

■ improved weight loss and weight control in type 2 diabetics

■ improved control of asthma

■  reduced risk of developing diabetes after a heart attack

■ reduced risk of mild cognitive impairment

■  prolonged life of Alzheimer disease patients

■ lower rates and severity of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease

■ lower risk of gastric (stomach) cancer

■ less risk of macular degeneration

■ less Parkinsons disease

■ increased chance of pregnancy in women undergoing fertility treatment

■  reduced prevalence of metabolic syndrome (when supplemented with nuts)

■ lower incidence of asthma and allergy-like symptoms in children of women who followed the Mediterranean diet while pregnant

Did you notice that I used the word “association” in relating the Mediterranean diet to health outcomes?  Association, of course, is not causation. 

The way to prove that a particular diet is healthier is to take 20,000 similar young adults, randomize the individuals in an interventional study to eat one of two test diets for the next 60 years, monitoring them for the development of various diseases and death.  Make sure they stay on the assigned test diet.  Then you’d have an answer for that population and those two diets.  Then you have to compare the winning diet to yet other diets.  And a study done in Caucasians would not necessarily apply to Asians, Native Americans, Blacks, or Hispanics.

Now you begin to see why scientists tend to rely on observational  rather than interventional diet studies.

I became quite interested in nutrition around the turn of the century as my patients asked me for dietary advice to help them lose weight and control or prevent various diseases.  At that time, the Atkins diet, Mediterranean diet, and Dr. Dean Ornish’s vegetarian program for heart patients were all popular.  And you couldn’t pick three programs with more differences!  So I had my work cut out for me. 

After much scientific literature review, I find the Mediterranean diet to be the healthiest for the general population.  People with particular medical problems or ethnicities may do better on another diet.  People with diabetes or prediabetes are probably better off with a carbohydrate-restricted diet, such as the Low-Carb Mediterranean Diet. 

Dan Buettner makes a good argument for plant-based diets in his longevity book, The Blue Zones.  The Mediterranean diet qualifies as plant-based.

What do you consider the overall healthiest diet, and why?

Steve Parker, M.D.

References:

Sofi, Francesco, et al.  Accruing evidence about benefits of adherence to the Mediterranean diet on health: an updated systematic review and meta-analysis.  American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, ePub ahead of print, September 1, 2010.  doi: 10.3945/ajcn.2010.29673

Buckland, Genevieve, et al.  Adherence to a Mediterranean diet and risk of gastric adenocarcinoma within the European Prospective Investigation into Cancer and Nutrition (EPIC) cohort study.  American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, December 9, 2009, epub ahead of print.  doi: 10.3945/ajcn.2009.28209

Fortes, C., et al.  A protective effect of the Mediterraenan diet for cutaneous melanoma.  International Journal of Epidmiology, 37 (2008): 1,018-1,029.

Sofi, Francesco, et al.  Adherence to Mediterranean diet and health status: Meta-analysis.  British Medical Journal, 337; a1344.  Published online September 11, 2008.  doi:10.1136/bmj.a1344

Benetou, V., et al.  Conformity to traditional Mediterranean diet and cancer incidence: the Greek EPIC cohort.  British Journal of Cancer, 99 (2008): 191-195.

Mitrou, Panagiota N., et al.  Mediterranean Dietary Pattern and Prediction of All-Cause Mortality in a US Population,  Archives of Internal Medicine, 167 (2007): 2461-2468.

Feart, Catherine, et al.  Adherence to a Mediterranean diet, cognitive decline, and risk of dementia.  Journal of the American Medical Association, 302 (2009): 638-648.

Scarmeas, Nikolaos, et al.  Physical activity, diet, and risk of Alzheimer Disease.  Journal of the American Medical Association, 302 (2009): 627-637.

Scarmeas, Nikolaos, et al.  Mediterranean Diet and Mild Cognitive Impairment.  Archives of Neurology, 66 (2009): 216-225.

Scarmeas, N., et al.  Mediterranean diet and Alzheimer disease mortality.  Neurology, 69 (2007):1,084-1,093.

Fung, Teresa, et al.  Mediterranean diet and incidence of and mortality from coronary heart disease and stroke in women.  Circulation, 119 (2009): 1,093-1,100.

Mente, Andrew, et al.  A Systematic Review of the Evidence Supporting a Causal Link Between Dietary Factors and Coronary Heart Disease.  Archives of Internal Medicine, 169 (2009): 659-669.

Salas-Salvado, Jordi, et al.  Effect of a Mediterranean Diet Supplemented With Nuts on Metabolic Syndrome Status: One-Year Results of the PREDIMED Randomized Trial.  Archives of Internal Medicine, 168 (2008): 2,449-2,458.

Mozaffarian, Dariush, et al.  Incidence of new-onset diabetes and impaired fasting glucose in patients with recent myocardial infarction and the effect of clinical and lifestyle risk factors.  Lancet, 370 (2007) 667-675.

Esposito, Katherine, et al.  Effects of a Mediterranean-style diet on the need for antihyperglycemic drug therapy in patients with newly diagnosed type 2 diabetes.  Annals of Internal Medicine, 151 (2009): 306-314.

Shai, Iris, et al.  Weight Loss with a Low-Carbohydrate, Mediterranean, or Low-Fat Diet.  New England Journal of Medicine, 359 (2008): 229-241.

Martinez-Gonzalez, M.A., et al.  Adherence to Mediterranean diet and risk of developing diabetes: prospective cohort study.  British Medical Journal, BMJ,doi:10.1136/bmj.39561.501007.BE (published online May 29, 2008).

Trichopoulou, Antonia, et al.  Anatomy of health effects of the Mediterranean diet: Greek EPIC prospective cohort study.  British Medical Journal, 338 (2009): b2337.  DOI: 10.1136/bmj.b2337.

Barros, R., et al.  Adherence to the Mediterranean diet and fresh fruit intake are associated with improved asthma control.  Allergy, vol. 63 (2008): 917-923.

Varraso, Raphaelle, et al.  Prospective study of dietary patterns and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease among US men.  Thorax, vol. 62, (2007): 786-791

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October 22, 2010 · 2:00 AM

THIS Is Why I Love the Mediterranean Diet

Italian researchers reviewed the medical/nutrition literature of the last three years and confirmed that the Mediterranean diet 1) reduces the risk of death, 2) reduces  heart disease illness and death, 3) cuts the risk of getting or dying from cancer, and 4) diminishes the odds of developing dementia, Parkinsons disease, stroke, and mild cognitive impairment.

These same investigators published a similar meta-analysis in 2008, looking at 12 studies.  Over the ensuing three years (as of June, 2010), seven new prospective cohort studies looked at the health benefits of the Mediterranean diet.  The report at hand is a combination of all 19 studies, covering over 2,000,000 participants followed for four to 20 years.  Nine of the 19 Mediterranean diet studies were done in Europe.

The newer studies, in particular, firmed up the diet’s protective effect against stroke, and added protection against mild cognitive impairment.

So What?

The Mediterranean diet: No other way of eating has so much scientific evidence that it’s healthy and worthy of adoption by the general population.  Not the DASH diet, not the “prudent diet,” not the American Heart Association diet, not vegetarian diets, not vegan diets, not raw-food diets, not Esselstyne’s diet, not Ornish’s diet, not Atkins diet, not Oprah’s latest diet, not the Standard American Diet, not the  . . . you name it. 

Not even the Low-Carb Mediterranean Diet.

Just as important, the research shows you don’t have to go full-bore Mediterranean to gain a health and longevity benefit.  Adopting  just a couple Mediterranean diet features yeilds a modest but sigificant gain.  For a list of Mediterranean diet components, visit Oldways or the Advanced Mediterranean Diet website. 

Steve Parker, M.D.

Reference:  Sofi, Francesco, et al.  Accruing evidence about benefits of adherence to the Mediterranean diet on health: an updated systematic review and meta-analysis.  American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, ePub ahead of print, September 1, 2010.  doi: 10.3945/ajcn.2010.29673

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September 6, 2010 · 2:00 AM

Mediterranean Diet Lowers Risk of Breast Cancer

A study in the current issue of the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition associates the Mediterranean diet with lower risk of breast cancer in postmenopausal women.

The data derive from the Greek portion of the massive EPIC study: European Prospective Investigation Into Cancer and nutrition.  Investigators followed almost 15,000 women for 10 years.  No protective effect was seen for premenopausal women eating Mediterranean-style.  The study at hand adds to prior evidence that the Mediterranean diet seems to protect against cancer of the breast, prostate, uterus, and colon/rectum.

Steve Parker, M.D.

Reference:  Trichopoulou, Antonia, et al.  Conformity to traditional Mediterranean diet and breast cancer risk in the Greek EPIC (European Prospective Investigation into Cancer and nutrition) cohort.  American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, published July 14, 2010.  doi: 10.3945/ajcn.2010.29619

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July 15, 2010 · 10:01 AM

Maybe Diet Prevents Alzheimer Dementia After All

I blogged about a study by Gu et al on April 30, 2010, that found significantly lower incidence of Alzheimer dementia in people in Manhattan who followed this dietary pattern:

  • relatively high consumption of salad dressing, nuts, fish, tomatoes, fruits, dark green leafy vegetables, and cruciferous  vegetables
  • relatively low consumption of poultry, red meat, butter, and high-fat dairy

About the same time, a National Institutes of Health expert panel pooh-poohed the possibility that diet had any effect one way or the other on Alzheimer’s. 

Why does this matter?  Five million U.S. adults have Alzheimer dementia already, and it’s going to get much worse over the coming decades.

A June, 2010, issue of Journal of the American Medical Association has a commentary by two doctors (Martha Morris, Sc.D., and Christine Tangney, Ph.D.), experts in the field of nutrition.  Here’s their explanation of the NIH panel’s negative findings:

Many of the inconsistencies among studies of dietary factors can be attributed to the complexity of nutrition science and the omission of nutrition expertise in the design and analysis of both epidemiological and randomized controlled trials.

Morris and Tangney think the findings of Gu et al are valid, confirming prior studies showing benefit to diets high in vitamin E (from food) and low in saturated fat from animals.  They point out that the animal foods may simply be displacing beneficial nutrients in other foods, rather than directly causing harm.

Until we have further data, anyone at risk for Alzhiemer’s may be better off following the dietary pattern above, or the Mediterranean diet.  The two are similar.

Steve Parker, M.D.

Disclaimer:  All matters regarding your health require supervision by a personal physician or other appropriate health professional familiar with your current health status.  Always consult your personal physican before making any dietary or exercise changes. 

Reference: Morris, M., & Tangney, C.  Diet and Prevention of Alzheimer Disease.  The Journal of the American Medical Association, 303 (2010): 2,519-2,520.    doi: 10.1001/jama.2010.844

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July 2, 2010 · 2:00 AM

Basic Science: Mediterranean Diet Boosts Antioxidant Power

Compared to the low-fat American Heart Association diet, the traditional Mediterranean diet rich in olive oil has more capacity to counteract potentially harmful “free radicals” and “reactive oxygen species” in our bodies, according to researchers at the University of Navarra in Spain.

Our tissues normally contain free radicals and reactive oxygen species, which are intrinsic to cell metabolism.  They serve useful purposes.  In excessive amounts, however, many believe they cause “oxidative damage” and thereby contribute to chronic degenerative conditions such as atherosclerosis, aging, dementia, and cancer.

Antioxidants are thought to neutralize free radicals and reactive oxygen species, which may lead to better health.

The PREDIMED study is an ongoing Spanish project testing the heart-protective effects of the Mediterranean diet in high-risk people over the course of four years.  The three intervention groups are 1) Medi diet plus supplemental virgin olive oil, 2) Medi diet plus extra tree nuts, and 3) low-fat American Heart Association diet.

After three years of follow-up, the researchers measured “total antioxidant capacity” in the bloodstream of a subset of the PREDIMED participants.

They found that the two Mediterranean diet groups had significantly greater total antioxidant capacity, about 50% more than the low-fat control group.  Within the Medi + olive oil group, the participants with the highest levels of antioxidant capacity actually tended to lose weight, an association not seen in the other groups.

The Researchers’ Conclusions

Mediterranean diet, especially rich in virgin olive oil, is associatied with higher levels of plasma antioxidant capactiy.  Plasma total antioxidant capacity is related to a reduction in body weight after three years of intervention in a high cardiovascular risk population with a Mediterranean-style diet rich in virgin olive oil.

In other words, the Mediterranean diet with virgin olive oil may help you keep your weight under control, and the antioxidant capacity may contribute to the well-documented health benefits of the diet.

Steve Parker, M.D.

PS:  It’s impossible to tell from this report just how much weight loss was seen in the high-TAC Medi+olive oil subjects.  I doubt it was much.  Baseline body mass index for all participants was around 29, so they were overweight and just a shade under obese.

PPS:  Both the Ketogenic Mediterranean and Diabetic Mediterranean Diets mandate minimal amounts of olive oil consumption, with no upper limit.

Reference: Razquin, C., et al. A 3 year follow-up of a Mediterranean diet rich in virgin olive oil is associated with high plasma antioxidant capacity and reduced body weight gain.  European Journal of Clinical Nutrition, 63 (2009): 1,387-1,393.  doi 10.1038/ejcn.2009.106

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June 28, 2010 · 2:00 AM

MSDP Protects Against MetSyn (NCEP ATP-III Criteria) in FHSOC

ResearchBlogging.orgTranslation:  A Mediterranean-style dietary pattern protected against onset of metabolic syndrome (as defined by National Cholesterol Education Program Adult Treatment Panel III) in the Framingham Heart Study Offspring Cohort.

Made you look! 

Don’t you just love acronyms?  Lately it seems you gotta have a clever acronym for your scientific study or it won’t get published or remembered. 

Metabolic syndrome is a constellation of clinical traits that are associated with increased risk for developing cardiovascular disease (two-fold increased risk) and type 2 diabetes (six-fold increased risk).  It’squite common—about 47 million in the U.S. have it.  Metabolic syndrome features include insulin resistance, large waist circumference, low HDL cholesterol, elevated fasting blood sugar, high triglycerides, and elevated blood pressure. 

For optimal health, you want to avoid metabolic syndrome.

Boston-based researchers reported in American Journal of Clinical Nutrition last December that followers of the the Mediterranean diet had less risk of developing metabolic syndrome; not by much, but it was statistically significant.  The study population was the Framingham (Massachusetts) Heart Study Offspring Cohort.

Several thousand men and women were studied via food frequency questionnaires, lab work, and physical exams.  Adherence to the Mediterranean diet was measured via a calculated score ranging from zero to 100.  No diabetics were enrolled.  Average age was 54.  Follow-up time averaged seven years.

They found that those adhering closely to the Mediterranean diet had fewer metabolic syndrome traits at baseline: less insulin resistance, lower waist size,  lower fasting blood sugar, lower triglycerides, and higher HDL cholesterol levels.

Not only that, the Mediterranean dieters developed less metabolic syndrome over time.  Over seven years, 38% of the folks with least compliance to the Mediterranean diet developed metabolic syndrome.  Of those with highest adherence, only 30% developed it.

This is the first study to show a prospective association between the Mediterranean diet and improved insulin resistance.  Avoiding insulin resistance is a good thing, and may help explain the Spanish study that found lower incidence of type 2 diabetes in Mediterranean diet followers.

Why didn’t the investigators report on the incidence of diabetes that developed over the course of the study?  Surely some of these folks developed diabetes.  Are they saving that for another report?  “Publish or perish,” you know.

You can start to see why the Mediterranean diet has a reputation as one of the healthiest around. 

It would be interesting to score these study participants with a very low-carb diet score (VLCDS—yeah, baby!).  Such diets are associated with lower blood pressure, lower blood sugars, lower triglycerides, and higher HDL cholesterol.  Like Mediterranean diet followers, I bet low-carbers would demonstrate lower prevalence of metabolic syndrome at baseline and lower incidence over time. 

Reference: Rumawas, M., Meigs, J., Dwyer, J., McKeown, N., & Jacques, P. (2009). Mediterranean-style dietary pattern, reduced risk of metabolic syndrome traits, and incidence in the Framingham Offspring Cohort American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, 90 (6), 1608-1614 DOI: 10.3945/ajcn.2009.27908

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