Cutting out red meat and dairy products ideal for those suffering heart disease Eating a Mediterranean-style diet can cut heart disease by as much as a third, new research shows. According to major clinical trial conducted in Spain, changing the balance of foods in a diet to Mediterranean cooking often found in the Middle East can lessen the risk of heart-related illnesses.
Previous studies have compared the effects of the diet on people after they have suffered a heart attack or stroke – with many showing improved heart health.
But this research was the first to rigorously test the effects on a high-risk group.
The study of around 7,500 people was actually halted early because the results were so clear it after just five years of monitoring.
The diet is high in fruit, vegetables, fish, nuts, whole grains and ‘healthy’ fats such as those in olive oil, while low in red meat and dairy products.
In the study, researchers randomly assigned up to 8000 people in Spain aged 55 to 80 years who were overweight, smokers, had diabetes or other risk factors for heart disease to follow the Mediterranean diet or a low-fat diet.
Those on the Mediterranean diets got five servings of fruit and vegetables, and fish three times a week, as well as additional olive oil or nuts each day.
They were encouraged to eat white meat rather than red, and legumes, including beans, peas and lentils, at least three times a week.
Those accustomed to drinking were meant to have at least one glass of wine a day with their meals.
They were asked to avoid commercially made cookies, pastries and cakes, and limit their consumption of dairy foods and processed meats.
Overall, people eating a Mediterranean-style diet were 30 percent less likely to suffer heart attack, stroke or heart-related death compared with those on a low-fat diet, according to the findings published online by the New England Journal of Medicine.
Dr Ramon Estruch, a professor of medicine at the University of Barcelona, who led the study, said he thought the diet worked because of the entire nutritional package.
However, he didn’t expect the diet to be so effective, he said: “This is actually really surprising to us.”