A Harvard study has shed light on the health benefits of Mediterranean lifestyle
What is Mediterranean lifestyle?
Mediterranean Lifestyle comprises a plant based diet, social participation, leisure physical activity, low environmental impact, and stress control. Mediterranean lifestyle includes, diet rich in fruits, vegetables, and whole grains; healthy eating habits like limiting added salt and sugars; and habits promoting adequate rest, physical activity, and socialization, the Harvard researchers have said.
More than 1 lakh people were studied
The daily habits of a total of 110,799 people were analysed across England, Wales, and Scotland on the basis of lifestyle questionnaire and diet assessments. The participants were studied using the Mediterranean Lifestyle (MEDLIFE) index which calculated the score based on the information provided by the participants under three categories.
How was the study done?
Participants were asked to provide information under three categories: Mediterranean food consumption which included consumption of fruits and whole grains, Mediterranean dietary habits which included limiting salt and drinking healthy beverages and a third category titled "physical activity, rest, and social habits and conviviality" which included taking regular naps, exercising, and spending time with friends, the Harvard research report says.
Nine years later...
The health outcomes of the participants were analysed nine years later and the researchers found that from among the participants, 4,247 died from all causes; 2,401 from cancer; and 731 from cardiovascular disease. The researchers found that those with high scores were found to have a 29% lower risk of all cause mortality and a 28% lower risk of cancer mortality.
"Non-local people can adopt to the Mediterranean lifestyle"
According to the lead author of the study, Mercedes Sotos Prieto, Ramon y Cajal research fellow at La Universidad Autónoma de Madrid and adjunct assistant professor of environmental health at Harvard Chan School: This study suggests that it’s possible for non-Mediterranean populations to adopt the Mediterranean diet using locally available products and to adopt the overall Mediterranean lifestyle within their own cultural contexts.
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Things to be careful about
Do not immediately start a new diet or lifestyle. Take expert opinion before doing so. Talk to your doctor or a diet expert, inform them about your entire health condition and then change your diet. Ask for the dos and don'ts in your diet. Exposing the body to a completely new diet all of a sudden can do more harm than good.
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