What Foods Are in the Mediterranean Diet?

There are already many proven benefits to following a Mediterranean diet, and now we can add another one: a new study of the dietary habits of about 1,000 people found that the high levels of monounsaturated fats found in a Mediterranean diet may help your smarts by protecting against small vessel damage in your brain. That benefit may help slow cognitive decline as well as prevent strokes.

Past studies have found that following a Mediterranean diet can help lower the risk of heart and eye complications, control your weight, and help you live longer, so there are more than a few good reasons to eat like you live overseas. Read on for five staples of the Mediterranean diet you should be eating.

Sources: Thinkstock, Flickr Users bochalla and Gustty