Dietician recommends Mediterranean diet for disease prevention
A Mediterranean style diet gives people protection against diabetes, heart disease and certain types of cancer, according to Nigel Denby, dietician and founder of grub4life.org.uk.Mr Denby said that it is the combination of foods found in a Mediterranean diet that combine to give people numerous health benefits.
He said: "Plenty of fruits and vegetables, lots of unsaturated healthy oils like olive oil and sunflower oil, plenty of fish, pulses and whole grains all have a mountain of evidence behind them [in terms of their health giving benefits]."
Fruit and vegetables, he explained, are good in terms of increasing fibre and protective antioxidants.
Research from Maastricht University has shown that eating a Mediterranean diet, avoiding smoking and taking regular exercise can extend a woman's life expectancy by 15 years.
The study, which examined the lifestyles of 120, 852 people, also showed that the same measures can extend a man's life by 8.5 years.
