Healthy Food Chart

From Diet Blog Share:

The Mediterranean diet has been part of the natural lifestyle for so many people living in and around the Mediterranean Sea for as long as…well, who really knows! Countries like Spain, Italy, Greece, Tunisia and Turkey all eat in a healthy manner as part of their culture.

Extensive research across most western countries is consistently finding more and more health benefits from a Mediterranean style diet. These include healthy weight loss, and assisting with the prevention against Alzheimer’s, cancer, and allergies. It can even help reduce cholesterol which is a double benefit as far as your heart is concerned.

The Mediterranean diet is high in fresh fruit and vegetables, extra virgin olive oil, fish, whole grains and nuts which provide a diet high in fiber and anti-oxidants. This diet is low in red meat, dairy products and saturated fats, but does include a moderate level of alcohol consumption. Mostly red wine (again, in moderation).

Earlier research has verified, and many recent studies have shown, that people from Mediterranean countries have longer, disease free lives.

The Mediterranean Diet is based on a cultural way of life which includes the ritual of cooking and preparing food to share with friends and family. Mediterranean people primarily cook their food and sometimes eat it raw (i.e. Greek salad). Eating is a very social part of the Mediterranean culture. Extra virgin olive oil is the base of nearly all Mediterranean cooking but just as important are the grains, seafood, fresh fruit and vegetables, couscous, palenta and so much more. There are also small amounts of poultry, red meat and eggs. However, these items fall into a ‘not too often’ category.

In many western nations, today’s lifestyle all too often leaves us overweight, lethargic and often unwell. It’s the consistency of this consumption which does the damage. It has become normal to grab a takeaway meal and a soda, some beer and chips. These are alright in moderation, but we forget the damage it does to our bodies if we eat this sort of food all the time. We are so busy with our lives, we rearely stop to think what we are chomping into. This all leeds to ill health, obesity, and often later, disease.

The Mediterranean diet can even reduce cholesterol levels which is a great bonus if you prefer to have a healthy heart.

You will need to do some exercise daily – even something like taking the dog for a twenty minute walk is acceptable. It is all about balance.

Alzheimer’s disease
Recent research has also indicated that reducing the risks of Alzheimer’s Disease is linked with the Mediterranean diet and low impact exercise. Alzheimer’s Disease is a debilitating illness that affects your memory as you grow older.

Allergies
Worldwide research has shown the Mediterranean diet can be helpful in protecting you against allergies. The diet is so rich in fresh food and other relevant properties that it can build the immune system of our children. These foods are rich in anti-oxidants which help the body to fight off pollutants that invade our bodies. When you breathe in things like pollens, your body produces symptoms like a runny nose to fight off what it believes to be harmful. In countries like Greece, very few children suffer from allergies, and it is thought to be because of the traditional diet.

Weight loss
If you embrace the Mediterranean diet along with regular exercise, you will lose weight naturally. As a bonus you will also benfit from the healthy aspects of the Mediterranean diet. The nutrition levels are high and diverse.

Cancer
As with many other diseases, prevention is better than the cure. An additional benefit of this diet is it can help prevent cancer. If you have been diagnosed with cancer then this is a diet worth considering and discussing with your doctor.

No matter who you are, the Mediterranean diet explained further is worth serious consideration. All those people along the Mediterranean Sea must be doing something right.