Need another reason to eat a Mediterranean diet? We know you don’t, but here’s one anyway – your gut bacteria! US scientists have found that a more diverse, heavily plantbased diet enhances the good bacteria in your gut by up to seven per cent, compared to just 0.5 per cent from a more traditional, meat-centric western diet. The two diets researched had the same amount of calories, but the western diet included lard, beef, butter, and sucrose, while the Mediterranean diet consisted of olive oil, eggs, wheat flour, veg and sucrose. After 30 months, the good and bad bacteria was analysed and the diversity in the Med diet group was far better. Read more about the importance of good gut bacteria on mental wellbeing on p66.