In line with the Oldways Preservation & Exchange Trust, The Mediterranean Diet Program was introduced in 1993 by Oldways, Harvard School of Public Health and the World Health Organization. It is in line with the traditional food items consumed by men and women living in the Mediterranean region, particularly Greece. The diet consists of:

• Olives as well as olive oil.
• Whole grains, mostly in bread as well as cereal as opposed to pasta.
• Very little red meat.
• Fish as well as seafood.
• Some cheese, yet a smaller amount of milk.
• Lots of vegatables and fruits.
• Plenty of legumes as well as nuts.
• A little red wine.

Those who live in this region usually follow a diet regime high in extra fat, but they also have a much lower occurrence of coronary disease as well as cancer than folks in other regions of the world. This is unusual, since the majority high-fat diets are generally associated with a greater chance of ailment as well as demise. This difference might be due to the utilization of olive oil as opposed to other kinds of fats. Olive oil is a monounsaturated fatty acids that keeps your arteries healthy.

Most likely, though, the difference is due to the entire diet regime, not only the olive oil. The Mediterranean diet is very high in dietary fiber as well as antioxidants coming from greens, legumes as well as nuts — much higher compared to standard Western diet regime — and also low in saturated fat. Hardly any red meat is actually consumed in this area and milk consumption is limited also, aside from some cheese as well as yogurt.

You don’t need to live in Greece to consume a diet that will help to keep you healthy. Oldways designed a Mediterranean Diet Food Pyramid to help you discover which foods are best. The base of the pyramid consist of foods like whole grain breads, cereals, pasta, potatoes as well as rice. Fresh fruits, legumes, nuts as well as greens constitute one more huge share of one’s daily diet, in addition to scaled-down quantities of cheese, yogurt as well as olive oil. Poultry, fish as well as eggs are consumed weekly and red meats are only consumed about once per month. Oldways also recommends you drink six glasses of water every day, in addition to moderate consumption of red wine for some people. The Mediterranean pyramid also allows for 1 sweet treat each week.

Follow the Mediterranean Diet Plan

Exchange the fat you use now with olive oil. You probably don’t wish to increase the amount of calories to your diet regime so use olive oil in place of butter, margarine as well as other salad dressing oils. Olive oil is good for food preparation too. Do not butter your bread, then dip it in olive oil.

Take in vegetables — lots of vegetables. This just can’t be stressed enough. Every proper diet includes lots of vegetables. Lots of people in the Mediterranean eat a pound of greens every day. Green and colorful vegetables are generally low in calories and high in antioxidants. Put together Greek vegetarian dishes several times each week.

Choose whole grains. Take away the refined white bread as well as pasta out of your diet. Whole grains and cereals are high in fiber and delicious. Potatoes and polenta, which is made from corn meal, can also be commonly used as starches in the Mediterranean.

Take in poultry and fish. Fish contains omega-3 fatty acids that are good for your heart and your brain so it may be one of the reasons this dietary plan protects your health. Plus, fish is low in total fat and low in calories therefore it makes a fantastic source of protein. Poultry as well as eggs can also be acceptable protein sources. Bake or broil your fish or chicken, don’t deep fry them. Deep fried foods don’t go with this diet in any way.

Limit red meat to infrequent consumption. Red meat has a lot of saturated fat that is detrimental to your heart so there isn’t much space for steaks and burgers in this diet regime, only about 1 meal monthly. Instead of a oily burger from a burger joint, make your personal ground turkey burger on a whole grain bun as an alternative. Add lettuce, a slice of avocado and also tomato and you won’t miss the red meat.

Discover legumes as well as nuts. Legumes have plenty of fiber, protein and vitamins and minerals and can be used in a principal dish. Choose fava beans as well as other dry beans. Nuts such as almonds, walnuts and cashews make a delicious and also healthy treat.

Enjoy fruits as dessert. Avoid sugary pastries, cakes and also cookies. Fruit is lower in calories and high in dietary fiber and vitamins and minerals.

Yogurt as well as cheese are sources of calcium. Choose a few low fat yogurt as well as cheese every day. You could make a yogurt dressing or try a healthy salad with tomatoes and feta cheese.

Drink water as well as wine. The Mediterranean pyramid includes six glasses of water every day and a glass or two of red wine. Drinking water is good for everybody, but don’t drink red wine should you be pregnant, under-age or if perhaps drinking alcohol puts you or others at risk.