MEXICO CITY — Oldways Preservation Trust — the food issues think tank that popularized the concept and virtues of the Mediterranean diet — has turned its attention to the Latin American diet.

During a summit last week in the Latin world's largest city, the group invited a coalition of nutritionists, chefs and food manufacturers to discuss the health issues facing Latin Americans in this age of rapid urbanization. Specifically, they looked at the alarming rise in the rates of diabetes, obesity and cardiovascular disease that has occurred among Latin populations as people moved into cities and abandoned their traditional foodways.

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In the United States, Latinos are twice as likely to have diabetes as non-Latino whites. Also, 47 percent of Mexican-American women are considered obese, compared with 33 percent of white women.

As recently as a generation ago, the diets in the countries of Central and South America and the Caribbean relied equally on grains, beans, nuts, fruits and vegetables, with a sparing use of meats and cooking fats. Today, urbanized Latinos derive their caloric intake primarily from processed carbohydrates and cooking fats.

At the end of the summit, the group's scientific committee laid the groundwork for an ambitious program to inform and educate Latino populations throughout the Americas about healthy eating choices, health risks and healthful cooking traditions. Mission Foods, the tortilla manufacturer with a major manufacturing plant in Jefferson, Ga., committed $100,000 to get the program off the ground.

For more information, visit Oldways.