Antonia Trichopoulou Brings Us Back to the Beginning
Present at the creation has been a title that has been metaphorically used by several authors who were witnesses or contributed to events with substantial consequences of either scientific or political nature.
With an excusable dose of hyperbole, I can claim that I was present at the universal recognition of the Mediterranean Diet in a 1993 conference in Boston, by the Harvard School of Public Health and Oldways, attended by distinguished scientists and visionaries, including the late Dun Gifford, the then Dean of the Harvard School of Public Health Harvey Fineberg, Professor Walter Willett, senior WHO officer Elisabeth Helsing, as well as many others. Some of us, who had the opportunity to be familiar with the traditional Mediterranean Diet and had early but quite strong evidence of its health promoting consequences were also present.
Indeed, since the late 1980’s I had the opportunity to introduce some of my non-Mediterranean friends to the traditional Mediterranean Diet in remote villages of Greece, where they have all appreciated the delight of this diet, replete with olive oil, in the confidence that they were also taking good care of their health.
-Antonia Trichopoulou
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