For seniors who are looking for a longevity diet the Mediterranean diet is a sure fire answer. It has been used to preempt aging in the Mediterranean world for centuries. Recent European studies have confirmed what the ancients already knew and practiced successfully. A US-based study has confirmed the proven life-extension benefits that were known in the ancient world and confirmed by the recent European studies. The US researchers were from a cancer institute, but they tracked the diets of over 375,000 men and women between the ages of 50 to 71. The researchers particularly tracked who would die from cancer and cardiovascular disease.
The folks who scored 66% or higher on a nine point system based on the elements of the Mediterranean diet had a much greater chance of living over ten years after the start of the study compared with those who scored below 44%. The elements in the Mediterranean diet included fruits, vegetables, whole grains, fish, legumes, nuts and seeds, fats such as olive and canola oil, small amounts of red meat and alcohol. The study did not measure any dairy products, but the Mediterranean diet usually includes small amounts of dairy products typically cheese and yogurt.