Mediterranean Diet Polyphenols: Anthocyanins and Their Implications for Health

The Mediterranean diet (MD) is becoming a milestone for the prevention of chronic disease, such as cardiovascular diseases (CVDs), Alzheimer's and Parkinson's disease. Ancel Keys in the 1950's showed a low mortality rate, in particular for coronary heart disease, among people resident in Mediterranean area. The MD is characterized by the intake of high amount of vegetables, fruit and cereals and regular but moderate consumption of wine, fish and dairy products, while olive oil is the main source of culinary fat. Therefore, it is principally a plant-based diet rich in polyphenols, a heterogeneous category of compounds with different properties and bio availabilities. Among polyphenols, anthocyanins have been combined into the human food regime for centuries and have been utilized as traditional herbal remedies for their abilities to treat several conditions, as potent anti-oxidants, anti-diabetic and anti-carcinogenic compounds. This reviews summarizes our knowledge on the health-enhancing component of anthocyanins-rich diet.