Eating healthy, even if you are obese, offers life-saving benefits while eating poorly, even if you are lean, can be deadly. That was the sobering conclusion of a new study from Sweden. For this study, scientists monitored the diet quality and weight of 79,023 Swedish adults whose diet quality and body weights were monitored over a 21-year period.

For diet quality study subjects were assigned a score from 0 to 8 depending on how closely their reported diets were to a Mediterranean pattern—one comprised of fruits, veggies, legumes, whole grains, nuts, fish, and olive oil, while low in red meat, sugar and refined carbs. Obese study subjects with high MED Diet scores were no more likely to die than lean subjects with a high MED Diet score. Conversely, lean subjects with a low MED Diet score were significantly more likely to die than lean subjects with a high MED Diet score.

This study underscores the enormous impact diet quality has on health, regardless of weight status. No matter where your body weight falls, healthy eating will lower your risk of dying and unhealthy eating will raise your risk of dying.

Remember, your diet is the single greatest predictor of your risk of disease and death. How is yours?