The Mediterranean Diet May Calm The Stress Response, Research Finds

For the study, researchers at the Wake Forest School of Medicine looked at the acute and chronic stress levels of 38 macaque monkeys over the course of 31 months (about nine human years). Some of the omnivorous primates were fed a Western diet high in animal fat, salt, and sugar, while the rest were fed a Mediterranean diet.

By exposing the monkeys to different stressors, such as being isolated for 30 minutes, the researchers were able to measure their levels of cortisol—aka the "stress hormone"—as well as changes to their sympathetic and parasympathetic nervous systems. They also looked at how the primates' sympathetic nervous system (responsible for fight-or-flight reflexes) aged based on diet over the course of the study.

The monkeys in this research fared far better at dealing with stress when they were eating a Mediterranean diet. Namely, they weren't as affected by stressors, and afterward, they recovered faster than those on a Western diet.

"Our study showed that the Mediterranean diet shifted the balance toward the parasympathetic nervous system, which is good for health," notes professor and study co-author, Carol Shively, Ph.D., in a news release. "By contrast, the Western diet increased the sympathetic response to stress, which is like having the panic button on all the time—and that isn't healthy."

Additionally, the study authors note those monkeys eating a Mediterranean diet exhibited slowed aging of the sympathetic nervous system compared to those eating a Western diet.

While follow-up research needs to be done on actual humans, this study shows that eating a Mediterranean diet, characterized by lots of vegetables, healthy fat, and lean protein like seafood, might be an effective approach for combating stress—and keeping the nervous system healthy as we age.

Two things are definitely clear: Chronic stress is bad for our health, and what we put in our bodies makes a difference.