The Mediterranean Diet For centuries, the people of the Mediterranean have been eating a joyful, flavorful diet — one that happens to protect them against the chronic diseases of modern times: heart disease, adult-onset diabetes, stroke, and colon and other cancers.

In a recent Spanish study, men and women between 65 and 80 who followed the Mediterranean diet were 31 percent less likely to die over the next nine years, compared to those who did not.

The traditional diets of Greece, southern Italy, southern France, Spain, Portugal, and even Turkey and Israel are rich in bread, grains, beans, fish, vegetables, some red meat, fruits, and olive oil, but they contain little ice cream, or highly processed snack foods.

The Mediterranean diet is not low in total fat. In fact, it’s often as high in total fat as the usual American diet. But the fat is mostly monounsaturated and comes mainly from olive oil, nuts, and fish — all “good” fats that don’t promote heart disease.

As long as you don’t overdo it and let the calories pile up, the Mediterranean diet — with grains, vegetables, beans, and fruits at the center of the plate and olive oil the primary source of fat — is healthy for everyone.

Especially if you embrace another central feature of traditional Mediterranean life: plenty of physical activity like walking. [source: RD Special]