New Study Shows Mediterranean Diet Best for Heart Attack Prevention

Here is one more study that shows obesity, heart attacks, strokes, high cholesterol and high blood pressure are influenced by lifestyle. Researchers at the University of Athens, in Greece showed that a person's chances of becoming diabetic or developing high blood pressure, heart attacks or obesity can be predicted by the diet he eats (Preventive Medicine, April 2007).

The authors developed a diet score ranging from 0–55 to check adherence to the Mediterranean diet. The gave scores of 0 to 5 each for consuming non-refined cereals, fruits, vegetables, legumes, olive oil, fish and potatoes). They awarded scores of 0 to 5 for eating these foods: never, rare, frequent, very frequent, weekly and daily. They subtracted points for eating red meat, poultry and full fat dairy products. You guessed it. Those on healthy diets were at very low risk for these conditions, while those with low scores were at high risk.

This study confirms many others that advise you to eat plenty of fruits, vegetables, whole grains, beans, seeds, and nuts, and some fish and shellfish. For a perfect score, follow my modified DASH diet guidelines