It is well established that eating a Mediterranean diet lowers your risk for cardiovascular disease and cancer, and now a new study links this low-fat, high-antioxidant diet with improved quality of life and mental well-being.

In a study published in March 2012 in the European Journal of Clinical Nutrition, Spanish researchers compared information gathered from exhaustive dietary questionnaires and detailed health surveys of 11,015 Spanish college graduates. Results showed that the degree that the study participants followed the Mediterranean diet was directly correlated with their mental and physical health. Researchers found that the people who most frequently ate Mediterranean style reported less pain, better general health and vitality, and better social and emotional function.

The Mediterranean Diet is modeled on the traditional diet of the countries that border the Mediterranean Sea. It is typically high in fruits, vegetables, nuts, beans and whole grains. Olive oil is used instead of saturated fats like butter. Fish is eaten more frequently than red meat, and participants generally drink a moderate amount (about 1 cup) of red wine daily. 

Results of a six-year-long study published in the May 2012 issue of Nutrition, Metabolism and Cardiovascular Disease tell us that close adherence to the Mediterranean diet reduces levels of the cluster of symptoms commonly referred to as metabolic syndrome—cholesterol, blood sugar and body mass index. 

These studies only add to an already large body of research on the benefits of the Mediterranean diet. An excellent website that summarizes the research and history of this dietary concept is http://oldwayspt.org/about-us.