A Mediterranean diet reduces the prospect of an early death.
A Mediterranean diet cuts the chance of early death for females
Scientists found that women who ate lots of fruit, vegetables and fish typically lived for longer than those who tucked into red meat and drank beer.
Experts in the US studied a group of more than 23,000 healthy females aged 45 and older - who provided blood samples and filled out a questionnaire on their food and drink consumption.
The participants were scored from zero to nine depending on how closely they followed the Mediterranean diet and analysis showed that a higher score was linked to a significant reduction of the risk of death from any cause - even when height, weight and other health aspects were factored in.
Dr. Samia Mora, senior author of the study and professor of medicine at Harvard Medical School, said: "For women who want to live longer, our study says watch your diet.
"The good news is that following a Mediterranean dietary pattern could result in about one-quarter reduction in risk of death over more than 25 years."
Tagged in Healthy eating