A glass of red wine, salmon flavored with olive oil and herbs, and dessert of mixed berries and nuts. It sounds like dinner at a fancy restaurant, but it's actually an age-old way of eating. Research shows a Mediterranean diet wards off disease and can even add years to your life.
Drizzle on some olive oil. Mix in some fruits, veggies beans, nuts and whole grains, and you have the basics of a traditional Mediterranean diet.
"It's filled with healthy fats, antioxidants, vitamins, minerals, lean protein -- really everything you need to live a healthy, balanced life," Nicki Heverling, program manager at the Mediterranean Food 
Alliance in Boston, Mass., told Ivanhoe.
One study shows a Mediterranean diet cuts the risk of death and cardiac disease by 9 percent and Alzheimer's disease by 13 percent. It also helps shed weight.
"I lost the twenty five pounds," Cynthia Harriman, a Mediterranean dieter, said.
Go Mediterranean by swapping butter for extra virgin olive oil, mayonnaise for hummus, and meat 
for fish. Another option…
"Beans are loaded with protein, fiber and antioxidants," Heverling said. "It's a great substitute for meats."
As many as 40 percent of calories in the Mediterranean diet come from fat, but it's low in saturated, "bad" fat, and high in monounsaturated, "healthy" fat.
