Mediterranean Diet to Prevent Lou Gehrig’s Disease?

Seems as if the omega-3 fatty acids can do no wrong, only good. Dutch scientists have found that Mediterranean-style diets, rich in polyunsaturated fatty acids and vitamin E, reduce the risk of developing amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, or ALS, also known as Lou Gehrig's disease.

The researchers compared 132 patients with definite, probable, or possible ALS with 220 controls who were matched as far as possible regarding age, gender, etc. All the participants completed food frequency questionnaires, which allowed analyses to show that people who had a high intake of polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFA) or vitamin E had a significantly lower risk – about 40% - of developing ALS. Those who took more PUFA and vitamin E had a 65% reduction in their risk of ALS.

A Mediterranean diet has the following features:

• high consumption of fruits, vegetables, bread and other cereals, potatoes, beans, nuts and seeds
• olive oil is an important monounsaturated fat source
• dairy products, fish and poultry are consumed in low to moderate amounts, and little red meat is eaten
• eggs are consumed zero to four times a week
• wine is consumed in low to moderate amounts