Studies in the past have all linked longevity to a Mediterranean diet, heavy on the vegetables, often skipping meat, all washed down and enjoyed with a bit of wine.  Some components of a Mediterranean diet may be more vital to good health than others, so, if your wish to live longer, as you prepare dinner tonight, high vegetable and olive oil but low meat consumption, combined with a moderate consumption of alcohol, are diet aspects recommended strongly, linked as they are to longevity.
 
Researchers from the University of Athens Medical School link longevity to higher consumption of large quantities of vegetables, fruits, nuts, legumes and olive oil, keeping alcohol intake moderate and avoiding too much meat.  However, eating lots of fish or seafood, going light on dairy products does not seem to impact or increase longevity.
 
The researchers looked at Greek participants, 23,349-men and women who had not been diagnosed with cancer, heart disease, or diabetes previously, in the European Prospective Investigation into Cancer and Nutrition study.
 
They examined their diets, all rated according to how closely they adhered to a traditional Mediterranean diet, and on an average they were followed for 8.5-years, till June 2008.  They found many of the health benefits of a Mediterranean diet were negated, when heavy vegetable consumption, light meat intake or moderate drinking were removed from the analysis.  Combining several components, like a diet rich in vegetables and olive oil, showed health benefits.
 
During the study period, 652-participants of the of the 12,694 with lower Mediterranean diet scores of 0-4 died, while there were 423-deaths among the 10,655-participants with higher scores of minimum 5.  The higher the score, the more likely the study participant was alive at the end of the study.
 
Certain diet aspects contributed more to this phenomena, and in order of importance are: moderate alcohol consumption, low consumption of meat and meat products, high vegetable consumption, high fruit and nut consumption, high monounsaturated to saturated fat ratio, and high legume consumption.