The Healthy Indian Diet
  • Home
  • Books
  • Eat Healthy
  • Recipes
  • Blog

Wait, what Mediterranean Diet?

5/10/2011

0 Comments

 
Picture
A thought-provoking essay in the New York Times magazine (article here) finds one writer looking for the healthy Mediterranean Diet in Lebanon, but it's nowhere to be seen. She comes to the conclusion that there's no such thing as a "Mediterranean Diet." 

She writes:

"'The Mediterranean diet was always a composite. Spaniards love pork; Egyptians, as a rule, do not. In some regions, people made pesto with lard, not olive oil. 'There is no such thing called the Mediterranean diet; there are Mediterranean diets,' says Rami Zurayk, an agriculture professor at the American University in Beirut. 'They share some commonalities — there is a lot of fruits and vegetables, there is a lot of fresh produce in them, they are eaten in small dishes, there is less meat in them. These are common characteristics, but there are many different Mediterranean diets.'" So when experts tell us to eat the Mediterranean Diet, they're telling us to select from a broad cornucopia of foods considered traditional foods from the many lands and cultures around the Mediterranean Sea.

Another observation is that nobody in Italy or Greece eats from the traditional Mediterranean Diet. Instead, young Italians and Greeks, like young Lebanese, eat from modern foods, which is mostly processed or refined, full of bad carbs and bad fats, and low in nutrition. And young people around the Mediterranean Sea are showing it with increased rates of obesity and chronic diseases.

The writer's last observation is that the Mediterranean Diet as we think of it today is based on il cibo povero, or poor man's food. The first studies that led to the development of the Mediterranean Diet were done on south Europeans who lived in the aftermath of WWII. Like most of Europe, these areas were devastated by war and impoverished. Foods like red meat was scarce and thus expensive, and even sugar was rationed.

In the ensuing decade, these same people in southern Europe became richer and demanded higher-quality "Western" food. All the while, as they adopted modern foods, researchers began to learn that there was a lot of good things about their traditional diets. 
0 Comments

Your comment will be posted after it is approved.


Leave a Reply.

    Book

    Paperback book
    Amazon.com
    Barnes & Noble

    E-Book
    Amazon Kindle
    Apple iPad/iPhone
    B&N Nook
    Smashwords

    Author

    Niraj "Raj" Patel, M.D.

    Picture

    Contact

    info@healthyindiandiet.com

    Archives

    February 2015
    January 2015
    December 2014
    September 2014
    August 2014
    July 2014
    June 2014
    May 2014
    April 2014
    February 2014
    January 2014
    September 2013
    July 2013
    June 2013
    May 2013
    April 2013
    March 2013
    February 2013
    January 2013
    December 2012
    November 2012
    October 2012
    September 2012
    August 2012
    July 2012
    June 2012
    May 2012
    April 2012
    March 2012
    February 2012
    January 2012
    December 2011
    November 2011
    October 2011
    September 2011
    August 2011
    July 2011
    June 2011
    May 2011
    April 2011
    February 2011

    Categories

    All
    Brown Rice
    Healthy Fats
    Healthy Indian Recipes
    Interviews
    Legumes
    Lose Weight
    Low Bad Carb
    Miscellaneous
    Plant Based Foods
    Plant-based Foods
    Research
    Reviews
    Spice
    Sugar
    Talks
    Tips
    Traditional Diet
    Whole Grains

    RSS Feed

    Disclaimer: The facts, advice and opinion on www.healthyindiandiet.com are based on scientific evidence published in journals. However, no content should be construed as medical advice. You should seek the counsel of your physician before making changes based on the content, especially if you have a medical condition.  
This site is for people who want to eat healthy and love Indian food. Consult your physician before making changes to your diet. To the fullest extent of the law, neither the publisher or authors assume any liability for consequences to persons or property arising out of or related to any use of the material on this website.
(c) 2010-2016 Surya Health Press
Contact us at info@healthyindiandiet.com.
Photos used under Creative Commons from rocketjim54, Charles Haynes, cyclonebill, Svadilfari, jeffreyw, Bordecia34