Puglia is a beautiful region in Southern Italy. In this article, researchers use Puglia as an example of the Mediterranean diet’s connection between both good taste and good health, highlighting typical, nutritionally balanced dishes (such as fave bianche e cicorie, orecchiette e cime di rapa, soup of pulses and whole wheat, savory anchovy pie, and salads). The authors also analyze the climate and vegetation of the region, noting that the abundance of olive oil and wheat, and the wide assortment of interesting local vegetables helps contribute to this mostly plant-based diet.
International Journal of Gastronomy and Food Science. 2015 January;2(2):63-71. doi.org/10.1016/j.ijgfs.2014.12.001. (Renna M et al.)

Eating more whole grains may help you live longer! Researchers from the Harvard School of Public Health analyzed data from over 110,000 adults. The scientists found that every one-ounce serving of whole grains was associated with a 5% lower total risk of death, or a 9% lower risk of death from heart disease. Whole grain intake was not significantly associated with cancer mortality. The researchers of this study conclude “these results are in line with recommendations that promote increased whole grain consumption to facilitate disease prevention.”
JAMA Internal Medicine. 2015 Jan 5.  [Epub ahead of print] (Wu H, et al.)

Replacing saturated fats (like butter and red meat) with unsaturated fats (like nuts, seeds, olive oil, and avocados) as part of an overall healthy diet is thought to be an effective strategy to help prevent heart disease. To see if people’s cholesterol levels and heart disease risk would decrease by substituting some of the saturated fat in their diets with healthier monounsaturated fats from oils or avocados, scientists randomly assigned 45 overweight and obese adults to 1 of 3 cholesterol lowering diets (one low fat, one moderate fat with sunflower oil, one moderate fat with avocados). They found that replacing saturated fat with monounsaturated fats did indeed have a positive effect on cholesterol and heart disease risk, but that the best improvement was seen in people who ate 1 avocado per day, compared to the group who ate extra oil. The avocado group even saw improvements in small dense LDL, the type of cholesterol thought to be most dangerous.
Journal of the American Heart Association. 2015 January; 4: e001355. (Wang L et al.) 

Pteridophytes, also known as ferns or fern allies, may sound exotic to people in the USA, but in Africa they are a crucial source of food. Many rural communities in sub–Saharan Africa depend on these wild edible plants not only during times of food shortage, but also as a pivotal component of their normal diets. There are at least 24 different species of pteridophytes eaten, with Pteridium aquilinum being the most widely consumed. These ferns also pack a punch when it comes to nutrition, with higher levels of minerals, carbohydrate, and protein than other common vegetables. There remains much to learn regarding the role of ferns in the sub–Saharan African diet and culture.
Journal of Ethnobiology and Ethnomedicine. 2014 Dec; 10: doi: 10.1186/1746–4269–10–78. (Maroyi A.)

The benefits of oats on blood sugar and cholesterol are well known, but new research suggests that the gut might also be involved. In a small study in Utah, 24 mice were fed a diet of either whole grain oat flour or refined (low bran) oat flour for eight weeks. The whole grain group had vastly different gut microbiota (the friendly bacteria in the gut) than the refined oat group, including twice as many beneficial Lactobacillacea. Those fed the whole grain oats also had significantly improved insulin sensitivity (a measure of how well a body is able to regulate its own blood sugar), 9.9% lower total cholesterol and 11% lower non-HDL (a combination of LDL and VLDL or “bad cholesterol”). The researchers speculate that the changes in gut microbiota could be a mechanism for improved insulin sensitivity and cholesterol, and conclude that these findings “further confirm the beneficial effect of whole grain oats.”
Journal of Nutrition. 2014 Dec 10. (Zhou A et al.)

Microbes are important for our digestive health, and researchers still have much to learn about how different foods impact our gut microbiome. In this study, researchers cooked 3 days worth of food from 3 different diets (a typical American diet with lots of convenience foods; a USDA recommended healthy diet with whole grains, fruits, vegetables, dairy, and lean meats; and a vegan diet consisting only of plant foods) and then analyzed the microbes present in the foods. The USDA recommended healthy diet was shown to have the highest total microorganisms. However, it was also the only meal plan that included yogurt, a non-heat-treated fermented food well known for its probiotic content.
PeerJ. 2014 Dec 9;(2):e659. doi:10.7717/peerj.659 (Lang JM et al.)

We know that healthy microbes are present in yogurt and other fermented foods, but research is showing that these friendly bacteria are actually present all throughout healthy diets. Researchers at the University of California, Davis measured the microbes in meals from three common diets: the standard American diet (consisting of fast food and convenience foods, and no whole grains), a vegan diet (which included oatmeal and peanut butter, a vegetable and tofu soup with soba noodles, and a Portobello burger on a whole wheat bun), and a healthy diet based on the USDA dietary guidelines (which included whole grain cereal with fruit and yogurt, a turkey sandwich on whole wheat bread, and a quinoa, chicken, and vegetable dinner). Researchers found that the microbe level in both whole grain diets outnumbered that of the standard American diet lacking in whole grains. The USDA diet had 1.3 billion microbes per day, the vegan diet had 6 million microbes per day, and the standard American diet had only 1.4 million microbes per day. While it’s unclear whether the benefit can be traced directly to whole grains or to a combination of interacting factors, this study points to the overall benefits of a healthy diet including whole grains.
PeerJ. 2014 Dec 9. (Lang J M et al.)

In a study of 63 overweight and obese adults instructed on various diets, South Carolina researchers examined the differences in nutrient intake and Dietary Inflammatory Index (DII). After two months, those assigned to vegan, vegetarian, and pescatarian diets had significantly lower DII scores and greater improvements in fiber, carbohydrate, fat, saturated fat, and cholesterol. However, after six months, no differences were seen among the diets. Due to these short-term benefits, the researchers concluded that greater consideration should be given to “finding ways to provide support for adoption and maintenance of plant-based dietary approaches.”
Nutrition Research. 2014 Dec 3. Pii:S0271-5317(14)00267-X. (Turner-McGrievy GM et al.)

Telomeres, DNA sequences at the end of chromosomes, can tell us a lot about aging and longevity, as shorter telomeres are associated with many age related diseases, such as heart disease and cancer. To determine the relationship between DNA and diet, Harvard researchers analyzed food intake and telomere length from over 4,600 healthy nurses using data from the Nurses’ Health Study. Researchers found that people with the greatest adherence to the Mediterranean Diet (lots of vegetables, fruits, grains (mostly unrefined), fish, legumes, and nuts, and less meat) had the longest telomeres, a good indicator of healthy aging. Additionally, the scientists pointed out that no one specific food was pinpointed as the best, reinforcing the importance of a well-rounded, healthy diet.
British Medical Journal. 2014 Dec 2;349. (Crous-Bou M et al.)

Chronic inflammation (the body’s response to stress) is linked with a number of diseases. To see how diet may play a role, Spanish researchers reviewed data on the Mediterranean diet and inflammatory disease, and found that following a Mediterranean diet is linked with both short and long term benefits for inflammatory diseases. In the short term, Mediterranean diets can help reduce risk factors associated with cardiovascular disease, like blood pressure and cholesterol. But the benefits of following a Med diet persist over time. In the long term, following this eating pattern has an intense, systemic, anti−inflammatory effect. This suggests that adherence to a Mediterranean diet may help protect against diseases like atherosclerosis, cancer, and neurodegenerative diseases, such as Alzheimers disease.
Endocrine, Metabolic & Immune Disorders−Drug Targets. 2014 Nov;14:245−254. (Casas R et al.)