"News Alert" – Editor’s Note: A brand new study released after the writing of this article now shows that the Mediterranean Diet truly does promote brain health. In a study presented at the American Academy of Neurology’s Annual Meeting, researchers presented data from brain scans of people after assessing their diets. Those that ate a Mediterranean diet were less likely to have areas of brain damage associated with small strokes. (See this National Public Radio blog for more information: http://www.npr.org/blogs/health/2010/02/heart_and_head_agree_on_health.html)
Imagine walking through a postcard-perfect Greek seaside community, with gleaming white homes overlooking the deep blue Mediterranean Sea. Under the warm sun, you can almost feel your blood pressure easing downward.
Even if an actual trip to the Mediterranean isn't in your future, simply eating like the locals may be beneficial for your blood pressure. Research is finding that the so-called "Mediterranean diet" may be useful for people with hypertension or other health problems that may accompany it.
In general, people in the Mediterranean have traditionally eaten a diet that provides a lot of fruits and vegetables, bread and other cereal foods, and beans. They also eat a relatively small amount of saturated fat - the stuff found in red meat and full-fat dairy foods - but get a lot of healthier monounsaturated fat from olive oil. Residents of this broad region are known for enjoying fish and a little red wine, too.
Recent research has shown some support for using a Mediterranean-style diet as a way of controlling your blood pressure. A 2008 study that followed thousands of Spanish residents found that those who followed a Mediterranean diet more closely had less age-related change in their blood pressure over six years compared with people who didn't really practice Mediterranean-style eating.
Another study from 2008 included older Spanish men and women who had diabetes or several other risk factors for heart disease. Those who more closely followed the Mediterranean diet were less likely to have all of these risk factors - diabetes, high blood pressure, high cholesterol, and obesity - or any two of them.
According to the American Heart Association, more than 50 million Americans have a collection of health concerns dubbed "metabolic syndrome," which includes high blood pressure, unhealthy cholesterol, and difficulty processing blood sugar. So if your blood pressure is too high, paying attention to these other concerns is a good idea.
If you're interested in incorporating elements of the Mediterranean diet into your life, you don't have to stock your kitchen with Greek cookbooks and hard-to-pronounce ingredients. Instead, the Mayo Clinic offers the following simple suggestions:
- Eat at least seven servings of fruits and vegetables daily. Be sure to mix in a wide variety of types from day to day.
- Eat less red meat and more fish and poultry.
- Use olive oil for cooking, dressing salads and pasta dishes, and for dipping whole wheat bread. Keep butter in your diet to a minimum.
- Snack on walnuts and other nuts, as well as peanut butter.
- When it's time to add flavor to your foods, use more herbs and spices and less salt
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