Many doctors and dietitians recommend a Mediterranean diet to prevent disease and keep people healthy for longer. With a healthier diet, exercise, weight maintenance and smoking avoidance, you are able to live healthy and free of cardiovascular disease.
The
Mediterranean diet may offer a host of health benefits, including weight loss,
heart and brain health, cancer prevention, and diabetes prevention and control.
By following the Mediterranean diet, you could also keep that weight off while
avoiding chronic disease.
It cools off
damaging inflammation, an immune system response triggered when the body fights
perceived intruders. Acute, or one-time, inflammation is helpful in fighting
viruses and bacteria, but people who are overweight, consume high levels of
refined foods, and lead a sedentary lifestyle have chronic, or ongoing,
inflammation, which may lead to diabetes and liver and heart disease.
No one can
deny that the world's healthiest diet, the Mediterranean diet is abundant in fruits,
vegetables, whole grains, legumes and olive oil. It features fish and poultry ,lean
sources of protein ,over red meat. Red wine is consumed regularly but in
moderate amounts.
How to
move to the Mediterranean one step at a time:
1- Try
oatmeal with fresh fruit and a splash of fat-free milk for breakfast instead of
bacon and eggs or pancakes.
2- Start
lunch with a vegetable salad, dressed with a drizzle of olive oil.
3- Have
fruit for dessert after dinner.
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Six tips
for starting a Mediterranean diet:
1- Cook with
Olive Oil
Olive oil is
rich in monounsaturated fatty acids, which may improve HDL cholesterol, the
"good" type of cholesterol. HDL cholesterol ferries "bad"
LDL particles out of arteries, according to a 2017 study in Circulation.
2- Eat More
Fish
This diet
emphasizes fatty fish like salmon, sardines and mackerel. These fish are rich
in heart- and brain-healthy omega-3 fatty acids.
3- Eat
Veggies All Day Long
4- Help
Yourself to Whole Grains
5- Snack on
Nuts
6- Enjoy Fruit for Dessert
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How to follow it
Eat:
vegetables, fruits, nuts, seeds, legumes, potatoes, whole grains, herbs,
spices, fish, seafood, and extra virgin olive oil.
Eat in
moderation: poultry, eggs, cheese, and yogurt.
Eat rarely:
red meat, sugar-sweetened beverages, added sugars, processed meat, refined
grains, refined oils, and other highly processed foods.
The Mediterranean diet pyramid should help get you started. The pyramid emphasizes eating fruits, veggies, whole grains, beans, nuts, legumes, olive oil and flavorful herbs and spices; fish and seafood at least a couple of times a week; and poultry, eggs, cheese and yogurt in moderation, while saving sweets and red meat for special occasions. Remember to stay physically active and you're set.
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