When in Rome - A Mediterranean diet can keep you healthy and stave off chronic illness

The health benefits of including fruit and vegetables in a diet were reinforced when studies showed how people in the Mediterranean suffered less from heart disease and cancer. It is common for a Mediterranean diet to contain higher amounts of fruit and vegetables than individuals living in Northern Europe.

It has never been conclusively shown why including sensible amounts of fruit and vegetables has reduced the likelihood of developing serious illness but it is thought to have something to do with the sheer amount of nutrients this type of food contains. If you were to equate this with circuit training, doing press ups by themselves would have a positive effect on your fitness and health but only one aspect of it. Doing the whole circuit however would have a positive impact on various elements of fitness and wellbeing. Trying to eat 5 types of fruit and vegetables a day does help keep the body healthy and enhances attempts to lead a healthy lifestyle by boosting the body's natural defences.

To maximise the types of nutrients you receive from fruit and vegetables, it is a good idea to try and eat different colours of these foods. This is because the different colours indicate different types and levels of nutrients the food contains. So eating for example, a combination of beetroot, cucumber, cauliflower, potatoes and some squash you are getting a decent mix of healthy food and varying the type of nutrient you are benefiting from.