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Mediterranean-Style Diet Lowers Heart Death Risk

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New Yorkers who ate a diet rich in fish, vegetables and legumes reduced their risk of a heart attack. This may sound familiar. The Mediterranean diet that has been shown to be heart-healthy is rich in vegetables and gets much of its protein from beans and fish. In this study, 2,500 people living in Manhattan were followed for nine years. About half of the volunteers were Hispanic, and approximately a quarter were African-American. All the participants were over 40 years old.

People's eating habits were rated at the beginning of the study on a scale that measured how close the diets were to a traditional Mediterranean diet. Those who scored highest had the lowest chance of a lethal heart attack or a pulmonary embolism. Even the diets with the most vegetables and fish, however, did not provide protection from stroke. The lead investigator acknowledges that this study does not prove a Mediterranean-type diet can protect people from heart disease, but he points out that it might help and won't hurt.


[American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, online Nov. 9, 2011]

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Yes, it's wonderful that there are fewer deaths of heart disease and I've somehow gotten to 74 with heart problems. Frankly, I'd much rather die of a heart attack than lingering with Alzheimer's, Parkinsons, etc. For younger people, great but for older people - get outta the way!

I believe in the Mediterranean diet but truthfully I would rather have a diet that would prevent strokes than a heart attack. I am very afraid of a stroke leaving me in a vegetative state. My mother lasted 7 years that way unable to speak coherently and unable to get out of bed. I'll follow the Med. diet but a heart attack does not scare me as much as a stroke. I am almost 72 years old.

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