If you’re looking for a healthy diet, one of the most commonly recommended by health professionals is the Mediterranean diet. Most physicians and healthcare professionals believe that wellness is greatly improved by a balanced diet. If you generally rely on plant-based sustenance or are a strict vegetarian, you realize that there needs to be a balance to get the proper proteins and nutrients to your body in the absence of meat.
This is not to say that a vegetarian diet can’t be healthy. On the contrary, there can be excellent benefits for this type of food, but the necessary nutrients must be included in your diet, which often means finding ways to replace the protein found in more standard diets.
This diet began hitting the health news as far back as the 1960s. The basic premise behind the diet is that people who live in Mediterranean regions experience much better heart health. There are some articles that suggest the diet itself is overly recommended. The diet consolidates a range of diets that are included in the region. Greek cuisine, for example, is not identical to Italian or Sicilian dishes. (Read “Rejecting Diet Culture and Embracing Sustainable Healthy Choices”)
Another thing to note is that people in this region have similar lifestyle patterns that are decidedly at odds with their North American counterparts. For instance, in the Mediterranean region, the largest meal of the day is at our traditional lunchtime. Their last meal of the day is often much smaller. They also take a break in the middle of the day. There may be other attributes at play, such as a higher rate of daily activity in the Mediterranean.
Many well-respected health organizations do recommend the diet, such as the Mayo Clinic. There have been many studies that show this diet can help with weight loss, improve cholesterol and blood sugar levels, and prevent major health conditions, such as stroke and heart attack. When conducting a study of the foods themselves, the diet consists of eating healthy fats and limiting red meat and dairy.
This diet is recommended so heavily because it can easily be integrated into your lifestyle. Simple substitutions, such as cooking with olive oil rather than butter, allow more people to comfortably move from their regular eating habits to a healthier diet.
This diet will mean adding more fruits and vegetables to their daily meals and limiting or eliminating processed bread and pasta in favor of whole-grain options.
The very basics things to know are:
If want to change your diet, discuss your health goals with your primary care provider, to see if it may be the right step for you. At Carbon Health, our providers are standing by to help you make informed decisions about your health. Make a virtual or in-person appointment today.
