There has been a lot of talk recently about whether fat or sugar is the worst offender when it comes to our eating habits. But by focusing on individual nutritional components it’s easy to miss the bigger picture. While it’s important to understand how different diets and nutrients affect our health and well-being, a whole diet approach offers a more helpful way of looking at our pattern of eating and choices.
A typical Mediterranean food includes lots of vegetables, fruits, beans, cereals and cereal products, for example whole-wheat bread, pasta and brown rice. It also contains rational amounts of fish, white meat and some dairy produce.
It’s the combination of all these elements that seems to bring health benefits, but one of the key aspects is the inclusion of healthy fats. Olive oil, which is a monounsaturated fat, is most commonly bracketed with the Mediterranean foods but polyunsaturated fats are also present in nuts, seeds and oily fish.
Research into the traditional Mediterranean foods have shown it may reduce our risk of developing conditions like - diabetes, high blood pressure and raised cholesterol, which are all risk factors for heart disease. Experts have also found that people who closely opt for a Mediterranean food may live a longer life and be less likely to put on weight.
As research into the benefits of this type of food is ongoing, there may eventually be certain foods that are found to have greater significance for health. For now however, it seems it is the overall diet approach and the combination of foods, rather than individual ‘super foods’, that make this a healthy way to eat.
This makes sense, as it’s true to say that if you are eating an unhealthy diet, full of processed foods, adding one element, such as olive oil, is unlikely to have noticeable health benefits if that’s the only change you make. However, if you adjust your whole diet so you eat a little less meat and more fish, opt for healthy fats and eat more fruit and vegetables, then it could make a significant difference.
Make use of this Article. Spread it to your family, friends and loved one’s so that they can find out the health benefits of Mediterranean Foods.
What is a Mediterranean Foods?
A typical Mediterranean food includes lots of vegetables, fruits, beans, cereals and cereal products, for example whole-wheat bread, pasta and brown rice. It also contains rational amounts of fish, white meat and some dairy produce.
It’s the combination of all these elements that seems to bring health benefits, but one of the key aspects is the inclusion of healthy fats. Olive oil, which is a monounsaturated fat, is most commonly bracketed with the Mediterranean foods but polyunsaturated fats are also present in nuts, seeds and oily fish.
What are the Health Benefits?
Research into the traditional Mediterranean foods have shown it may reduce our risk of developing conditions like - diabetes, high blood pressure and raised cholesterol, which are all risk factors for heart disease. Experts have also found that people who closely opt for a Mediterranean food may live a longer life and be less likely to put on weight.
How Does it Work?
As research into the benefits of this type of food is ongoing, there may eventually be certain foods that are found to have greater significance for health. For now however, it seems it is the overall diet approach and the combination of foods, rather than individual ‘super foods’, that make this a healthy way to eat.
This makes sense, as it’s true to say that if you are eating an unhealthy diet, full of processed foods, adding one element, such as olive oil, is unlikely to have noticeable health benefits if that’s the only change you make. However, if you adjust your whole diet so you eat a little less meat and more fish, opt for healthy fats and eat more fruit and vegetables, then it could make a significant difference.
Make use of this Article. Spread it to your family, friends and loved one’s so that they can find out the health benefits of Mediterranean Foods.
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