Recent studies indicating that the so-called “Mediterranean diet” may reduce the risk of heart disease and lead to an overall longer lifespan have been somewhat supported with the US Food and Drug Administration’s (FDA) announcement of a qualified health claim of the health value of olive oil. Researchers from Tufts are careful to point out, however, that it’s not as simple as switching to olive oil.

“The message remains the same, and is consistent with other findings: a diet lower in saturated fats” and higher in unsaturated fats, will result in better health outcomes, Alice Lichtenstein, director of Cardiovascular Nutrition Laboratory at the
Jean Mayer USDA Human Nutrition Research Center on Aging at Tufts and chair of the American Heart Association’s Nutrition Committee, told WebMD last year after a study published in the New England Journal of Medicine (NEJM) found that the
Mediterranean diet lowers death and disease risks.