According to a new Indiana University study, people consuming Mediterranean-style diet can augment their heart function and trim down their risk of developing cardiovascular diseases.

The research team exploited dietary survey and cardiac data from 276 identical or fraternal twins in an attempt to abolish the genetic risk factors generally linked to heart disease. The patients were ranked on how severely they followed the diet, and each individual endured an evaluation of their heart rate inconsistency, which is the disparity in the time hiatus between heart beats.

According to the researchers, people with a compact HRV are identified to have an improved risk of cardiovascular disease and abrupt death.

Lead author Jun Dai said, “This means that the autonomic system controlling someone’s heart rate works better in people who eat a diet similar to a Mediterranean diet”.