HomeDietary Fiber Mediterranean diet: health benefits of traditional mediteranean (food) diet
Mediterranean diet: health benefits of traditional mediteranean (food) diet
Mediterranean diet refers to the traditional food consumed in the Mediterranean region that includes Italy, Spain, Greece, Turkey, etc. It is not a such rigid diet regime but rather a diverse and variable in recipe across cultures in the Mediterranean basin. Eventhough most researches on mediterranean diet and its health benefits are observational, growing number of researches associate mediterranean diet with greater longitivity (anti-aging effect) and lower diseases incidence such as heart disease, Alzheimer's disease diabetes, hypertension and cancer, as compared to western diet. People in this region consume moderately red wine, olive oil, whole grain foods, legumes, fruits and vegetables that are high in antioxidants content.
To help our understanding of the health benefits of mediterranean diet, below is a list of sample of its nutritional qualities:
High monounsaturated-to-saturated fat ratio
Moderate wine consumption
High consumption of cereals, fruits, legumes, and vegetables
Fresh fruits as the typical daily dessert with sweets based on nuts, olive oil, and concentrated sugars or honey consumed during feast days
Low consumption of meat and meat products
Moderate consumption of milk and dairy products (mainly cheese and yogurt)
Minimally processed, seasonally fresh, and locally grown foods
Olive oil as the principal source of dietary fats
Fewer than four eggs consumed per week
Health benefits of Mediterranean diet
Sample of researches comparing Mediterranean diet with other diet regimes or habits.
Effects of Mediterranean diet
Swedish diet vs Mediterranean diet
Lower low-density lipoprotein (LDL) cholesterol and total cholesterol. No effect on oxidative stress (induced by free-radicals) and blood glucose.
Saturated fat-enriched diet vs. low fat and high carbohydrate diet vs. Mediterranean diet
Mediterranean diet and low fat and carbohydrate diet resulted in lower low-density lipoprotein cholesterol, high-density lipoprotein cholesterol, and total cholesterol.
Monounsaturated fat rich-diet (Mediteranean diet) vs. polyunsaturated fat rich diet
Lower fasting plasma insulin, greater content of oleic acid, and less linoleic acid and stearic acid. Increased transport of blood glucose by insulin.
Mediterranean diet vs. Western diet. With wine in both diets during some part of the trial.
Higher total plasma antioxidant capacity, lower oxidative DNA damage, higher vitamin C levels. Wine supplementation resulted in higher plasma vitamin C levels, total antioxidant reactivity in the Mediteranean diet.
Trinchopoulou, A., Lagiou, P., and Papas, A.M. 1999. Mediterranean diet: Are antioxidants central to its benefits? In: Antioxidant Status, Diet, Nutrition, and Health. Ed. Papas, A. CRC press, London . pg 108-118.
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