WASHINGTON — New research recently published on the Mediterranean diet suggests there can be big benefits to eating lots of healthy fats.

The study examined about 50 years’ worth of evidence — defining a Mediterranean diet as a plant-based one that includes healthy, monounsaturated fats such as olive oil. It also includes a lot of beans, fish, fruits and vegetables while tending to avoid meat and dairy.

“People who consume a Mediterranean diet with no restriction on fat intake have a lower risk of cardiovascular disease, breast cancer, and type 2 diabetes,” said lead researcher Dr. Hanna Bloomfield in a news release.

Bloomfield also said people sticking most strictly to the Mediterranean diet have better luck with cancer than those who don’t.

“Lower incidence of total cancer mortality, lower incidence of colorectal cancer and of lung cancer,” she added.

The study findings are published in the Annals of Internal Medicine.