A new study has found U.S. health care costs would drop significantly if Americans adopted a Mediterranean-style diet, which is rich in fish, nuts, and fruits.
If Americans increased their adherence to a Mediterranean-style diet by 20 percent, the U.S. healthcare system would realize between USD 21 billion (EUR 18 billion) and USD 26 billion (EUR 22 billion) in savings annually, according to a study presented at Nutrition 2018, held 9 to 12 June in Boston, Massachusetts, U.S.A.
“That’s a significant savings from what we believe is a realistic shift in diet quality,” lead study author Carolyn Scrafford, a senior managing scientist at Exponent, a scientific consulting firm, said in a press release. “Our results suggest that it’s worthwhile to educate Americans on these dietary patterns and their components, to encourage them to make little changes to improve their diet quality.”
Adhering to a Mediterranean diet would result in fewer Americans suffering from type-2 diabetes, Alzheimer’s disease, and hip fractures, as well as breast, colorectal, and prostate cancers, the researchers said.
If 80 percent of Americans increased their adherence to a Mediterranean diet, U.S. annual healthcare savings could total between USD 52 billion (EUR 45 billion) to USD 82 billion (EUR 71 billion), the researchers found.
The new findings corroborate several studies that show eating more seafood can save lives and reduce healthcare costs, Linda Cornish, president of Seafood Nutrition Partnership, told SeafoodSource.
“Fish literally saves lives. Eating seafood two to three times per week reduces the risk of death from any health-related cause by 17 percent,” Cornish said, referring to a 2006 JAMA study.
In addition, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control reports that 86 percent of all U.S. healthcare spending is for individuals with preventable chronic conditions, such as heart disease and diabetes.
“This equates to around USD 1 billion (EUR 862 million) a day for heart disease alone. Chronic disease is preventable through diet and lifestyle changes,” Cornish said.
