Notice that the authors of the study set up careful comparisons and then cut the study short after 5 years. Yes, for ethical reasons but that was very convenient for them. This way little will be known about the diets impact on cancer and how it compares with other diets around the world. And it doesn't seem as though they are looking for the very best diet in the world, just the best out of the 3 comparisons they set up. Hmmmm!

In the book "The Okinawa Program" it showed several diets that were better than The Mediterranean Diet. I believe the Mediterranean diet came in 7th or 8th. I'll look it up later to make sure.

When I first heard about The Mediterranean Diet in the news, I suspected that it might have been sponsored by the olive oil industry. Now that I have seen the Mediterranean food pyramid with olive oil at the bottom of the pyramid, I'm fairly certain that the study was sponsored by olive oil. If you don't think so, tell me what olive oil is doing at the bottom of the pyramid.

I still use a little olive oil but very very little. One teaspoon (i.e., 1 measuring spoon) with lunch and one teaspoon with dinner. When I read that olive oil was healthy, I felt encouraged and started to use slightly more (perhaps a table spoon per day which is still a small amount). And over a period of a few weeks I have put on about 4 pounds. It hasn't hurt me as far as weight because I was at a low weight anyway. But if I didn't go back to my regular amount of 2 teaspoons per day, I'd be living in fatsville by now.

So why isn't olive oil at the very tip of The Mediterranean pyramid, instead of at the bottom? Ca-ching - $$$$$, it's all about money. And the last thing they want to do is compare their diet with other diets around the world.

However, it will sell because the average person is more concerned with taste than anything else. And perhaps they really don't want the very best diet. Enjoy yourself now and worry about weight gain, strokes, and cancer later.

:)

The best diets in the world:
 

Okinawa, Japan came in first.

All of Japan came in second

Hong Kong came in third

Sweeden came in fourth

Italy (Mediterranean) came in eighth

Greece (Mediterranean) came in tenth

United States came in eighteenth

The source: World Health Organization 1996, and Japan Ministry of Health and Welfare 1996

This was based on Death Rates per 100,000 people for Coronary Heart Disease, Cancer, and Stroke.

For heart disease, Okinawa had 18 deaths per year while Italy and Greece both had 55.

For cancer, Okinawa had 97 deaths. Italy had 135 and Greece had 109.

For stroke, Okinawa had 35 deaths. Italy had 49 and Greece had 70.

I'm partial to the Med/diet but allergies restrict my intake of dairy and gluten foods and I don't digest soy well, and I avoid red meat ! Wish I could add a few more pounds to my 115 but it's not happening unless I resort to processed "junk" and I don't want to sacrifice good health. So what to do ? :mmmm:

The real question is not your weight but your "BMI"

Come on u can get more recent data than 1996?

Almost 20 years old????

Meaningless in 2013

My diet philosophy is simple............IF IT TASTES GOOD..............IT'S NOT GOOD FOR YOU............follow that and you'll live for a good long time....I hope.....!!!!!

Okinawa diet has pork, fish and poultry.

Okinawa diet - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Virtually no eggs or dairy products were consumed by the Okinawans.[9]

I love eggs ~ eat them almost every day at breakfast, but I'm not sure about eating pork ?

https://www.dtmi.duke.edu/news-publi...heart-troubles

Duke University is a great institution; we know relatives who've been cured of various ills there..........and others who work there.

Ditto, we can trust the research from the New England Journal of Medicine.......

No one is saying that anyone has to eat a certain way or not eat a certain way. Everyone has to choose what works for them.

NO "ONE WAY" is the one and only way.............in anything in life. I do not think it is good to be "rigid" about anything.......moderation is not a dirty word; neither is flexibility in meal choices.
If it's a celebratory event and the host has gone to great lengths to provide some well thought out delicious entrees or deserts, why not partake of them........
Tasteless cardboard is not my idea for Christmas or Easter. Dwelling totally on one's health day in and day out also is not conducive to being jovial and enjoying life.
Again, to each his own.........Mayo Clinic - Mediterranean Diet: Ingredients for a Heart-Healthy Eating Approach
It isn't just olive oil alone that constitutes the healthy eating approach within the Mediterranean Diet.........
When you consider that they do not use butter on their bread........also that they do not use creamy salad dressings on their green salads.....
Olive oil is used sparingly to drizzle on a salad...........or to saute with. It is the rest of the diet, in my mind, that is uppermost.
It's not a "diet" but meal choices..........lots of vegetables and fruits, nuts, SEAFOOD and very little red meat........red wine.


Olive oil: What are the health benefits? - MayoClinic.com

http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/med...ecipes/MY02229
Some Mediterranean Diet recipe.........from Mayo Clinic

Consider yourself lucky that you can't eat the above foods. You don't need them.

I agree with Jimbo that it's your BMI that's important. If your BMI is around 18 or 18.5, you're probably going to live a long healthy life, assuming you're getting the nutrition you need. If you want to gain weight, why don't you eat natural raw nuts, like walnuts and almonds. Nuts are healthy and high in calories.

I tried but couldn't find anything more recent.

It's only a little over 15 years old.

It's still an indication. The mediterranean diet has been around for a long time and I don't think it has changed much. The Okinawan diet hasn't changed, as far as I know. And the Standard American Diet is still about as bad as it can be. If anything, diets around the world may be slowly getting worse as the fast food industry makes new inroads.

Basically, as many of these diets have been written up in books, they will remain the same. The question is: Will people keep following them?

Jimbo, here's a challenge for you: Can you find a study to show how a plant based diet ranks with other diets such as the Okinawa diet? Do you have a study for a plant based diet that shows deaths per 100,000 for heart disease, cancer and stroke? Life expectancy for a plant based diet? Number of centenarians per 100,000 population?

Oh, NO!! Salad isn't good for me? And what about hardy vegetable soups? They're not good for me either?

I believe you mentioned this once before and the answer is still the same: You have to pay attention to the details of their diet. For example, they also eat eggs but only about 2 to 3 per week. And the eggs are from free roaming (outdoor) chickens that never get any growth hormones or antibiotics. Overall, the amount of animal protein they get in their diet is only a small fraction of what the average American gets. At some later time I'll get you an exact comparison (Okinawan vs American).

The problem with the average American: When they hear that pork, fish, poultry and eggs are okay. They will remember that but they won't remember any details about quantity and quality. Just like when they hear that chicken is healthier than red meat. They will proceed to eat fatty, breaded and deep fried chicken on a regular basis. Whereas Okinawans might only have boiled chicken a few times per year. And when they do have it, it might be in very small portions (I would guess about two ounces because they are small people and don't eat anything in big portions).

I see by your link the average BMI for Okinawans is 20.4. That's very good but not ideal. Ideal for an individual would be between 18 and 19, assuming we are not talking about body builders or professional athletes.

I never thought about my BMI so I checked online at BMi calculators and mine is 19.1 ~ in the healthy range ~ so I guess I'm OK and I do snack on raw almonds and other nuts without oil on them. :pepper2:

excellent