Changing dietary habits have placed Greece in a higher risk group for heart disease while other Southern European countries have managed to retain healthier diets, according to medical experts.

Doctors said at a conference in Athens yesterday that people from Italy, France and Spain are not exposed to a higher risk of heart disease due to their changing lifestyles.

Greeks, who were ranked in the low-risk group for heart problems, have been upped to medium risk as they have turned their back on healthier living and the Mediterranean cuisine.

If there is no coordinated attempt by authorities to prevent heart disease, then in a few years there will be a need for more health centers for patients suffering from heart attacks, medical experts said.

According to official data, some 20,000 Greeks suffer a heart attack every year while nearly one in two smoke and 20 percent are overweight.