In a study from the Autonomous University of Madrid, scientists found that the Mediterranean lifestyle, not just diet, may strongly boost your health.
The team found that the more middle-aged and older adults adhere to the Mediterranean lifestyle, the lower their risks of dying from cancer, heart disease and other health conditions.
This study suggests that adopting a Mediterranean lifestyle adapted to the local characteristics of non-Mediterranean populations is possible and can be part of a healthy lifestyle.
The researchers analyzed the impact of other Mediterranean lifestyle factors – including physical activity, rest, social habits and conviviality – on 110,799 middle-aged and older adults living in England, Scotland and Wales.
Participants were drawn from the UK Biobank and were free of cancer and cardiovascular disease when they enrolled between 2009 and 2012. They were followed until 2021.
A 25-point MEDLIFE index was used to score their adherence to the Mediterranean lifestyle.
The index was broken down into three blocks: Mediterranean food consumption (12 points), which looked at what people ate;
Mediterranean dietary habits (7 points), which looked at additional factors such as whether they snacked, added salt to their meals or preferred whole grains to refined grains; and other lifestyle factors (6 points).
The last block included questions on whether people ate meals with family and friends (conviviality); engaged in physical activity with others, for example by going on walks together; how often they met with family and friends (social habits); and how much sleep they got, both at night and through naps (rest).
After a follow-up time of 9 years, the team found the more people adhered to the Mediterranean lifestyle, the lower their risk of dying from cancer or from any cause.
Specifically, adults with the highest adherence to the Mediterranean lifestyle had a 29% lower risk of dying from any cause and a 28% lower risk of dying from cancer.
Higher scores for each of the three blocks of the MEDLIFE index were associated with lower cancer and all-cause death risks.
Higher scores for the third block, related to lifestyle activities, also were associated with lower heart death risks.
The team says the study highlights the important roles community and social engagement play in good health.
Studies have shown social isolation may increase a person’s risk of having or dying from a heart attack or stroke.
If you care about health, please read studies about how Mediterranean diet could protect your brain health, and this common plant nutrient could help reduce high blood pressure.
For more information about health, please see recent studies about olive oil that could reduce blood pressure in healthy people, and these antioxidants could help reduce dementia risk.
The study was conducted by Mercedes Sotos-Prieto et al and presented at the American Heart Association’s Epidemiology, Prevention, Lifestyle and Cardiometabolic Health conference.
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