Research has shown that a traditional Mediterranean diet provides assistance in protecting the body from type 2 diabetes.

Mediterranean meals are rich in olive oil, grains, fruits, nuts, vegetables, and fish, but have very little meat, dairy, or alcohol.

Studies hint that such a diet plays a major role in cardiovascular disease, however, there are not any current studies in how this diet effects the diabetic population.

The study involved over 13,000 graduates from the University of Navarra in Spain with no history of diabetes, and were recruited between December 1999 and November 2007;each participant had their dietary habits and health were tracked.

Developers of the study arranged to have a questionnaire that was designed to measure each participants eating habits. The test totaled 136 questions that asked the participants specifically about their cooking methods, types of oils they use, and their overall dietary supplements.

Researchers were able to gather information from the participant’s lifestyle, risk factors, diet, and other medical conditions by administering a series of questionnaires every two years. From this data, scientist were able to pick up cases of the 13,000 that developed diabetes.

During the follow-up period (median 4.4 years) the researchers from the University of Navarra found that participants who stuck closely to the diet had a lower risk of diabetes. A high adherence to the diet was associated with an 83% relative reduction in the risk of developing diabetes.

Interestingly, those participants who stuck strictly to the diet also were thought to have the highest risk factors for diabetes, premature aging, a family history of diabetes, and a higher proportion of ex-smokers.

This did not happen. In fact the participants had a lower risk of diabetes which suggested that the diet might provide substantial protection.

The characteristics of the diet include a high intake of fiber and vegetable fat, a low intake of trans fatty acids, and a moderate intake of alcohol.

A primary element in this diet is the abundant use of virgin oil for cooking, frying, spreading on bread, and dressing salads.

The scientist finished by calling for larger cohorts and trials to confirm their findings.

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