Heart-Healthy Diet – The Mediterranean way

Most people who have gone through our diabetes clinic will tell you how important diet is in both weight loss and overall health. You problably have gone through so many sites trying to figure out which diet is good for you. Well, the good news is that most, if not all, have similar outcomes with respect to risk of heart disease. So far there is only one exception, the Mediterranean diet. I’m by no means trying to neither sway nor convince you that the Mediterranean diet is just perfect for you. My main objective is to help you understand why this diet has made it to most of our diet experts’ crosshairs! 

Why the Mediterranean Diet?

There is scientific evidence that the Mediterranean diet lowers the risk of heart disease and early death.  This diet consists of nutritious ingredients blended with healthy eating habits inspired by countries around the Mediterranean Sea. Since diet is an important determinant of our health 80% of the time, its extremely important to take time and decide on what we consume daily. 

Important Facts about the Mediterranean diet:

1. As we already know Mediterranean diet has been shown to reduce cardio-metabolic risk from multiple studies.

2. This diet can vary from place to place because of variations between countries around the Mediterranean Sea. However, a lot of their constituents are similar and have a similar core base.

3. It’s a Nut-containing diet (low in saturated fat and cholesterol, high in poly- & monounsaturated fatty acids). Other chemicals contribute to cardio-protection beyond just fat composition, they also lower LDL significantly.

4. Pecan rich diet; A recent small study showed decrease in the risk of diabetes, insulin resistance and improvement in the function of the pancreas.

5. Others include: Decreased risk of dying from cancer, depression and decline in cognitive ability.

Constituents of the Mediterranean diet:

1. Meals rich in plant based foods and less of non-fish meats.

2. High proportion of vegetables, fruits and whole grains (daily).

3. Legumes – Peanuts, lentils, peas, beans, clover and so on.

4. Healthy fats (less in saturated fats and high in poly- and monounsaturated fats, like Olive oil).

5. Less red meat

6. Moderate intake of dairy products (cheese, yoghurt and milk) 

The best part about this diet is that there is so much variety, spices, its tasty and most food types are not forbidden. Of course the base ingredients like whole grains, legumes, vegetables and good fats have to be included at all times. The name of the game is “portion control”, that is small frequent meals.

So there you go, this should give you a guide on how to build a healthy diet. Remember that 80% of the time its all about portion control and how you use you diet. I recommend starting off with selecting the individual ingredients you like. Then from there just scale down or up the portion based on your individual calorie requirement.

Article Prepared and edited by M.July, MD CCD