The Mediterranean diet is famous throughout the world especially for being one of the healthiest diets . Today there are many studies that confirm this belief. The last one, the study that we are going to talk about next, has determined that eating nuts and olive oil (key food in the Mediterranean diet) prevents brain deterioration .
One more point in favor of the Mediterranean diet
The study we are talking about is derived from the PREDIMED trial (Prevention with Mediterranean Diet). For its realization there were 447 healthy volunteers at the cognitive level of both sexes but with a significant risk of suffering some type of cardiovascular disease . The average age of the participants was 67 years.
The investigation lasted 4 years and during the same, the participants followed three types of diet: a Mediterranean supplemented with extra virgin olive oil, another Mediterranean with an extra of nuts and a low-fat control. Following the type of diet assigned, the doctors carried out an exhaustive follow-up of the cognitive functions of each individual from the beginning to the end of the investigation.
The results were decisive: people who followed a Mediterranean diet with extra olive oil or nuts had a better cognitive function than people who followed the low-fat control diet, regardless of the age or sex of the people. Of the two diets that showed positive results, it seems that the one that was the most suitable to improve memory was supplemented with nuts, while the diet supplemented with olive oil improved the executive function of the participants.
Eating olive oil and nuts improves cognitive functions
These results also confirm what was already suspected and that the appearance of neurodegenerative diseases have much to do with eating habits. But these are not the only benefits of the Mediterranean diet, we also find a lower risk of suffering from abdominal obesity, diabetes, hypertension, heart attacks, strokes and, in general, greater physical and mental well-being.
The reason is found, among other aspects, in the monounsaturated fatty acids present in olive oil that reduce blood cholesterol, in the consumption of blue fish rich in Omega-3 fatty acids and in the moderate consumption of red wine. It has anthocyanins and resveratrol.
Good reasons we have to grab the best of the earth and take it to our plate. Do not you think?
