What are we talking about when we talk about the Mediterranean Diet? The answer to this question is that it is our traditional diet, the diet of our grandparents, what we have always eaten in this country …
However, this definition is insufficient, especially because industrialization and globalization have made us adopt foods and customs that were not our own, such as the consumption of many prepared foods, the so-called ultra-processed foods, which, although they bear the stamp of "homemade" or "grandmother's", they have nothing to do with the spoon dishes they made.
Characteristics of the Mediterranean Diet
To respond precisely to what the Mediterranean Diet is, we have resorted to the characteristics provided by the Predimed Study. This study, whose acronym stands for PREVENTION with MEDiterranean DIET, the largest ever conducted on nutrition in Europe, sought to assess the effectiveness of the Mediterranean diet to prevent chronic diseases.
- Olive oil as the main culinary fat.
- High consumption of fruits, nuts, vegetables, vegetables, legumes, fish and unrefined cereals.
- Low consumption of meat, especially reduced in red meat.
- Low dairy consumption.
- Consumption of red wine with meals.
Benefits of the Mediterranean Diet
It is a very healthy diet, which allows us to prevent a good number of diseases and also fight against overweight and obesity. In fact, this diet responds to the parameters established by the World Health Organization (WHO) on what a healthy diet has to be.
- It is heart healthy. The Predimed Study that we cited at the beginning managed to show that the Mediterranean Diet manages to reduce the risk of suffering a heart attack or stroke by 30% and that, therefore, it is a cardioprotective diet.
- Protect the brain. This diet limits age-related cognitive decline according to various studies and would be recommended as a diet to prevent Alzheimer's.
- Decreases the risk of cancer. Studies have shown the effectiveness of following the Mediterranean Diet to reduce the risk of breast cancer at menopause or stomach cancer.
- Helps to have a healthy weight. A study presented at the European Congress on Obesity held in 2017 in which 16,000 people participated showed that following this type of diet decreased the risk of obesity by 43%.
Why is the Mediterranean diet healthy according to the WHO?
For a diet to be healthy, the WHO says it has to meet the following standards:
- Include fruits and vegetables, at least five servings, the famous 5 a day.
- Legumes (lentils, beans, beans, chickpeas …), nuts and whole grains (wheat, rice, oats, corn, millet …) are also consumed.
- The added sugar - that of the sugar bowl or that added when cooking or to the food or drinks that are bought - must be less than 5% of the total of what is eaten (the equivalent of about 6 level teaspoons).
- Fats should not represent more than 30% of the global daily diet and it is recommended that they come from vegetable oils (olive, soy, canola), nuts, avocado or fish and not from foods such as meat, butter and food ultra-processed (frozen pizzas, industrial pastries …).
- It should also be a low-salt diet, of which you should take a maximum of one teaspoon a day (5 grams).
The Mediterranean Diet meets all the WHO standards to be a healthy diet, as is evident in the nutritional pyramid of the current Mediterranean Diet.
The nutritional pyramid of the current Mediterranean Diet
These are the foods that the Mediterranean diet includes and the frequency with which we should consume them. This pyramid has been updated with the consensus of different researchers in the world of health and nutrition and is endorsed by the Mediterranean Diet Foundation.
According to this pyramid of the current Mediterranean Diet, at each meal you have to eat:
- 1 or 2 servings of vegetables, one of them raw, since there are nutrients that are better assimilated when the vegetables are raw and others, such as lycopene in tomatoes, when cooked. And there are nutrients that are better assimilated in the company of other foods.
- 1 serving of fruit (for dessert).
- 1 or 2 servings of bread, pasta, rice, couscous … but always whole, so that no nutrients are lost in refining. The ration should be a garnish and adapt to the energy needs of the person, since it is not the same who does intense physical activity than who does not.
In addition, every day you have to take:
- A handful of nuts or seeds (about 20 grams)
- 2 dairy products, preferably milk or yogurt
And every week:
- 2 or more servings of fish .
- Maximum 2 servings of white meat (chicken, turkey, rabbit).
- 2 or 3 servings of legumes as a single dish.
- 5 to 7 eggs per week if there are no other medical indications.
- 2-3 portions of potato , usually the size of an egg and usually accompanied by a vegetable (the typical combination of spinach or green beans with potatoes, but also stewed or stewed legumes).
Occasional consumption:
- Sausages and processed meats (less than 1 serving per week)
- Red meat (less than 2 servings per week)
- Sweet . Very punctual. Think that before, cakes were only for birthday parties or special celebrations.
And to drink, the usual drink should be water as well as unsweetened infusions. And although the official recommendations set the amount of wine that can be drunk per day in a glass, the truth is that, in general, dietitians-nutritionists prefer to set a zero or much more sporadic consumption of alcoholic beverages.
How to organize a menu according to the current Mediterranean Diet
Well, if you follow the Mediterranean tradition, in the center of the table there will be a large varied salad and a single spoon dish (for example, some stewed lentils), or cooked vegetables and a second (spinach with potatoes and bakery sardines). For dessert, always fruit, as varied as possible and seasonal.
Typical menu of the Mediterranean Diet
- Breakfast: Toast of bread with tomato and tuna and a coffee
- Mid-morning: A fruit and a handful of nuts
- Lunch: Salad, chickpea stew and a seasonal fruit
- Snack: Fresh cheese and an infusion
- Dinner: Cream or vegetable soup, grilled or baked fish and a fruit or yogurt
Here is a complete weekly menu of the downloadable Mediterranean Diet: Weekly menu Mediterranean Diet
Mediterranean diet: a lifestyle
In addition to the nutritional components, the Mediterranean Diet includes 3 very important aspects of the Mediterranean lifestyle:
- Eating is a social act. Just as important as what is put on the plate is with whom this food is shared. The ideal is to do it in good company, sitting at the table and in a relaxed atmosphere.
- Physical activity. In traditional Mediterranean societies you went everywhere on foot and did physical tasks that made people very active. Today, in addition to walking as much as we can, the ideal is to train 3-4 times a week, since our society is increasingly sedentary.
- Live nature. This is another traditional aspect that has been lost as Mediterranean cities grow and become large cities such as Valencia, Barcelona, Marseille, Naples, Athens … But still, you have to try to get closer to the sea or the mountains to breathe fresh air, far away of pollution.
Mediterranean diet: how to follow it today
It is true that our life has changed a lot compared to that of two or three previous generations and that the fact that women have gone out to work outside the home has influenced how we eat today, but this does not mean that we have to give up The Mediterranean diet only means that we have to adopt a more current Mediterranean diet.
We must update this heritage, incorporating foods that were not produced in the Mediterranean before but are grown today - such as soy, from which other interesting foods such as tofu or tempeh are obtained; or kiwis, forest fruits … - and also adopting other cooking methods that make our lives easier - such as the speed cooker, the crockpot or slow cooker or the microwave - and, why not, eliminate some practices that scientific evidence questions, such as excessive consumption of cured meats or cheeses.
It is necessary to recover the recipe book of the grandmother but… updating it. To make it easy for you, here we offer you a downloadable book with the 25 best recipes of the current Mediterranean Diet.
DOWNLOAD THE MEDITERRANEAN DIET RECIPE BOOK
And you, do you follow the Mediterranean Diet?
If you want to know if your diet is really healthy and responds to an updated Mediterranean Diet, you can take our test.
And if you see that you have things to polish, in the following article we offer you a 21-day challenge to eat much more Mediterranean, do you sign up?
