Eating foods associated with the Mediterranean diet has been associated with lower cancer risks. New research shows that individuals adhering to a “Mediterranean lifestyle” have 29% lower risk of all-cause mortality and 28% lower risk of cancer mortality compared to those who do not. The Mediterranean lifestyle includes a variety of factors including diet, eating […]
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People with elevated blood sugar levels may have a 30–50% higher risk of developing heart disease, even if their blood sugar levels are below the diabetes threshold. CFOTO/Future Publishing via Getty Images Researchers found that people with elevated blood sugar levels have a 30–50% increased risk of developing heart disease, even if their blood sugar […]
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Eating foods associated with the Mediterranean diet has been associated with lower cancer risks. New research shows that individuals adhering to a “Mediterranean lifestyle” have 29% lower risk of all-cause mortality and 28% lower risk of cancer mortality compared to those who do not. The Mediterranean lifestyle includes a variety of factors including diet, eating […]
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People with elevated blood sugar levels may have a 30–50% higher risk of developing heart disease, even if their blood sugar levels are below the diabetes threshold. CFOTO/Future Publishing via Getty Images Researchers found that people with elevated blood sugar levels have a 30–50% increased risk of developing heart disease, even if their blood sugar […]
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Eating foods associated with the Mediterranean diet has been associated with lower cancer risks.
New research shows that individuals adhering to a “Mediterranean lifestyle” have 29% lower risk of all-cause mortality and 28% lower risk of cancer mortality compared to those who do not.
The Mediterranean lifestyle includes a variety of factors including diet, eating habits, and rest.
The study suggests that the health benefits can be replicated outside of the Mediterranean.
The Mediterranean lifestyle — including factors like diet, eating habits, rest, and physical exercise — has consistently been touted for its myriad health benefits, being both heart-healthy and protective against cancer. But can those benefits be replicated outside the unique geography of the Mediterranean region?
New research says: yes.
In a study published this week in Mayo Clinic Proceedings, researchers found that adherence to the Mediterranean lifestyle by middle-aged individuals living in the United Kingdom reduced all-cause and cancer-related mortality by 29% and 28%, respectively.
“This study adds to the literature that beyond diet, other components of the Mediterranean Lifestyle can play a combined and stronger role in the risk of mortality, cancer and cardiovascular disease, not only in Mediterranean countries but in non-Mediterranean,” Dr. Mercedes Sotos-Prieto, PhD, lead study author, Nutrition Epidemiologist at the University Autonomous of Madrid, Spain, and Adjunct Professor at Harvard T.H Chan School of Public Health, told Healthline.
What is the “Mediterranean Lifestyle”?
Sotos-Prieto and her fellow researchers utilized data from a cohort of individuals from the UK Biobank, a population-based study across England, to analyze the lifestyle and eating habits of 110,799 individuals between the ages of 40 and 75, with a nine-year follow-up period.
Using the MEDLIFE system, researchers were able to establish point-based scores for members of the cohort that indicated adherence to the Mediterranean lifestyle. MEDLIFE factors were broken down into three major categories: Mediterranean diet, eating habits, and physical and social habits.
The Mediterranean diet is defined by high consumption of fruits and vegetables, whole grains, healthy fats (like olive oil), and lean protein, predominantly fish. Eating habits of the region include limiting salt and sugar consumption, reduced exposure to processed foods, and moderate consumption of red wine. Social factors and “conviviality,” as the study terms it, include socializing with friends, especially at meals, collective sports, limited sedentary activities, and taking naps.
Using self-reported assessments about diet and physical activity, researchers were able to determine how well members of the UK Biobank cohort adhered to the primary components of the Mediterranean lifestyle.
What the Study Found
The results of the study found that those with the highest level of adherence to the Mediterranean lifestyle had the highest protective benefits compared to those with the lowest levels. Those with the highest levels of adherence had reduced all-cause and cancer-related mortality by 29% and 28%, respectively. In fact, researchers determined that every two-point increase in an individual’s MEDLIFE score was associated with a 9% lower risk of both all-cause and cancer-related mortality.
Kristin Kirkpatrick, MS, RDN, a dietician and president of KAK Consulting, told Healthline that the results of the study weren’t surprising.
“The Mediterranean diet has been consistently found to reduce the incidence of many chronic conditions. Related to cancer, it shows an example of how a dietary pattern high in nutrient-dense foods can help with overall health and cancer prevention. For example, many of the foods found on the Mediterranean diet are high in polyphenols and flavonoids, which have been found in other studies to play a protective role against certain chronic conditions including cancer,” she said.
Beyond the Mediterranean
While evidence has continued to grow about the salutary effects of the Mediterranean diet, particularly in relation to cardiovascular disease questions have emerged as to its feasibility outside of the geographic region from which it originated. Indeed, an article published just this year simultaneously noted the benefits of the diet, while also raising concern about it: “The requirement for strict adherence to this diet for the best preventative effects is not practical for most people in today’s world. Therefore, it is of the utmost importance to realize benefits appear to be significantly diminished when adherence occurs in an episodic nature or when only certain parts of the diet are followed.”
However, the work of Sotos-Prieto and her colleagues published this week further lends credence to the health benefits of not only the Mediterranean diet, but the synergistic effects of the entire Mediterranean lifestyle, even when it is undertaken in a country and culture outside its native geography.
“It is important to recognize that each country has its local habits, food consumption and, thus, food patterns should be culturally adapted to ensure both that it is accepted by the population and that it is feasible within the existing food market,” she said.
“Our study makes an important addition to the literature by showing that adherence to the Mediterranean diet based on locally available products was associated with lower all-cause and cancer mortality and, furthermore, that the overall Mediterranean way of life was also strongly protective of such outcomes.”
Speaking on behalf of the American Cancer Society, Dr. Caroline Um, PhD, RD, Principal Scientist, Epidemiology Research at the ACS, told Healthline “The findings of this study support those of other studies that suggest there are health benefits associated with a Mediterranean diet and lifestyle, and adds to the limited evidence that benefits may also extend to non-Mediterranean populations.”
“While the ACS Diet and Physical Activity Guidelines for Cancer PreventionTrusted Source do not specifically endorse the Mediterranean or any specific diet, they do contain several similar recommendations to the Mediterranean Lifestyle, such as a dietary pattern that includes fruits and vegetables and limits red and processed meats and sugar-sweetened beverages, as well as being physically active and limiting sedentary time. In contrast, the ACS Guidelines do not recommend any alcohol consumption for cancer prevention.”
Getting Started
If you’re interested in bringing some of the Mediterranean into your life and your kitchen, Kirkpatrick offers a few simple tips:
Find opportunities to obtain nutrient density: go for veggies and hummus or mixed nuts instead of chips.
Get five colors in every day. “Doing so means you’re eating more plants and trying a variety of options in turn provides a variety of nutrients.
Aim to consume more fiber and add more whole grains to your diet.
Limit consumption of processed red meat, sugar, and refined grains.
Healthline also has a handy beginner’s guide to the Mediterranean diet to answer more of your questions.
The Bottom Line
The Mediterranean lifestyle is consistently shown to be one of the healthiest diets in the world. New research indicates that it is associated with significantly lower all-cause and cancer-related mortality.
It is possible to adapt your diet and exercise to more closely resemble the Mediterranean lifestyle, even if you don’t actually live in the region, and you’ll likely reap some of the health benefits.
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People with elevated blood sugar levels may have a 30–50% higher risk of developing heart disease, even if their blood sugar levels are below the diabetes threshold. CFOTO/Future Publishing via Getty Images
Researchers found that people with elevated blood sugar levels have a 30–50% increased risk of developing heart disease, even if their blood sugar levels are below the threshold for diabetes.
The findings show that males were more likely to be prescribed preventive antihypertensive and statin therapies than females, revealing a “prescribing gap.”
Healthy blood sugar levels are important for health and energy, and certain factors may spike blood sugar, even when a person does not have diabetes.
Every person needs a certain amount of sugar in their blood to stay healthy and energized.
A person’s blood sugar levels will fluctuate throughout the day depending on what they eat and is also impacted by their age and overall health.
Researchers from the London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine and University College London have found both men and women with raised blood sugar levels have a 30–50% increased risk for developing cardiovascular disease, even if their blood sugar levels are below the threshold for diabetes.
Additionally, researchers reported a potential disparity between the amount of preventive antihypertensive and statin medications prescribed to males and females, suggesting a potential “prescribing gap.”
How high blood sugar may be linked to heart disease
Researchers analyzed data from the UK Biobank of more than 427,000 UK residents for the study.
About 54% of participants were females and about 46% were males. All participants had different blood sugar levels including:
healthy
prediabetic
diabetic
Dr. Christopher Rentsch, PhD, assistant professor of epidemiology at the London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine and lead author of this study explained to Medical News Today:
“We were interested to explore which risk factors drive known sex differences in the risk of heart disease between men and women with diabetes, and whether men or women with moderately elevated blood sugar below the threshold for diabetes are also at increased risk of heart disease.”
Upon analysis and after adjusting for age, the research team found both men and women with moderately elevated blood sugar levels below the threshold for diabetes were at increased risk for any type of cardiovascular disease.
“The finding that moderately elevated blood sugar below the diabetes threshold was associated with (an) increased risk of heart disease was not entirely surprising based on prior research in this area. For example, there is a recognized state of ‘prediabetes’ where blood sugar is elevated but not yet meeting the criteria for a diabetes diagnosis. Prediabetes is known to increase the risk of progressing to diabetes and potentially developing heart disease. Key novel contributions of our work were quantifying the risk of heart disease across a full range of blood sugar levels for both men and women and demonstrating these associations were largely explained by modifiable factors.”
What is considered high blood sugar?
Sometimes a person’s blood sugar, also known as blood glucose, can become too high. Certain factors may cause a person’s blood sugar to spike, even if they do not have diabetes. These may include:
unhealthy diet
lack of exercise
insufficient sleep
stress from illness
There are a few different tests used to determine a person’s blood sugar levels.
One of those tests is the fasting blood sugar test, where a person’s levels are checked when they have not eaten. A fasting glucose reading of 99 mg/dL or below is considered healthy.
Another commonly used test is the A1C test, which measures a person’s average blood sugar levels over two to three months. An A1C test reading of 5.7% or below is considered healthy.
When a person’s blood sugar levels test in ranges above normal, it is considered high blood sugar, medically known as hyperglycemia. High blood sugar can signal either prediabetes or diabetes.
Symptoms of high blood sugar include:
excessive thirst
frequent need to urinate
extreme hunger
unexplained weight loss
tiredness
blurred vision
headaches
mood changes
If left untreated, high blood sugar levels can lead to a variety of health issues, including:
nerve damage
chronic kidney disease
vision issues
foot ulcers
erectile dysfunction (ED)
skin problems
Previous research has also linked high blood sugar levels to an increased risk for certain heart conditions, including stroke and high blood pressure.
Talk with your doctor if you’re concerned about your blood sugar levels and heart disease risk.
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