As far as lifestyles go, the Europeans have a long standing knowledge of what’s good for the body and what isn’t. The exact types of foods to consume which promotes better health and longevity. What’s also apparent is the majority of Europeans, have lean bodies and flawless skin.
What’s been refined over the centuries is an eating method, a particular type of diet, the most popular being the Mediterranean style of eating.
This diet lifestyle, as a result has been rated the best overall diet by health experts, 4 years in a row.
The reason why this method of eating is healthy, is its particular selection of foods.
These include a combination of fresh produce, lean meats such as seafood and chicken, limited red meat, and the use of olive oil while sipping red wine.
This eating style, once combined with the fact most Europeans get plenty of exercise, as most are known to walk everywhere, you get a concise healthy lifestyle plan.
The idea is if it’s copied, what doing so could potentially result in is a lower risk of serious health issues, while prolonging the aging process.
A Longer Lifespan
There are studies linking the Mediterranean diet to the reduction of cardiovascular diseases, which contributes to life longevity.
What eating more fresh produce, olive oil, nuts and seeds does is it ramps up the health benefits by reducing heart related issues.
Although this diet would be most beneficial to begin when young, and follow it through life, research has shown its positive benefits appear at any stage of life.
Better Brain Function
There’s a correlation between the foods found in the Mediterranean diet, and better brain function.
What aging promotes is cognitive functioning to decline, which can lead to serious conditions such as dementia or Alzheimer’s.
Memory loss is a function of getting older, and considered a cognitive disease. The Mediterranean diet helps in keeping you young, deterring the effects of aging.
Prevention Of Fatty Liver Disease
The common North American diet consists primarily of processed foods, which contains unneeded fats, empty sugar, calories, and too much sodium.
This leads to the risk of obesity, which is one of the main causes of fatty liver disease.
What consuming extra virgin olive oil, a common staple found in the Mediterranean diet does, is rids of unneeded saturated fats from your diet, reducing the risk.
The Mediterranean diet also refrains from eating fatty red meat, as chicken and mineral rich fish are preferred.
Once you eat anything that’s difficult for the liver to process, such as red meat, doing so can lead towards liver disease.
Lowers High Blood Pressure
Every food group in the Mediterranean diet is found to lower blood pressure. Although genetics does play a role, an unhealthy diet that contains plenty of fat and sodium, are known to aggravate it.
Since processed foods are almost nonexistent in the Mediterranean diet, you won’t be consuming any hidden sugar or sodium which are the main culprits, that elevates blood pressure.
What high blood pressure can do, is lead towards hypertension along with other cardiovascular diseases. What you eat on a daily basis, regulates the levels of blood pressure.
Lowers The Risk of Diabetes
Olive oil, found common in the Mediterranean diet is used in a variety of cooking methods. The benefit being, it’s proven to lower the risk of developing Type 2 diabetes.
There are studies which shows high amounts of rich minerals along with phytochemicals found in the Mediterranean diet, are capable of reducing inflammation along with insulin resistance.
What the body needs is to successfully break down unneeded sugar, and if it’s not able to do so efficiently, the risk of Type 2 diabetes and other related diseases increases.
Lowers Cardiovascular And Heart Disease
Another advantage of consuming olive oil is it’s shown to greatly benefit the heart. What olive oil contains are monounsaturated fats, a lubricant that’s extremely organ friendly.
Those who consume fatty foods high in saturated fats, does is invites heart disease and high blood pressure.
The majority of the Mediterranean dishes are prepared using olive oil instead of butter or other fats, while most sauces and dressings include olive oil as the main ingredient.
The key is creating your own simple and easy healthy sauces by using just a few ingredients, the fresher the better.
What just a splash of extra virgin olive oil and balsamic vinegar does, is adds zing to any food.
Less Chemicals And Preservatives
The Mediterranean diet has a range of one ingredient items, such as fresh fruits and vegetables, fresh lean meat and fish.
What this guarantees is you’re not consuming any chemicals or preservatives, that’s commonly found in processed foods.
One common food item for instance found in the North American fridge, is a box of frozen chicken breasts.
The ingredients will list several unfamiliar chemical preservatives, resulting in you’re not just eating chicken.
What prepackaged, pre-made foods uses are plenty of harmful ingredients, such as sodium, sugar, and empty fats.
By adopting a Mediterranean type of diet, what you’ll avoid are all these ingredients.
Increases The Consumption Of Antioxidants
Antioxidants are all the buzz right now, as every known superfood is usually high in them. They’re linked to reducing the risk of major illnesses, along with practically every secondary health issue.
Antioxidants are known to contain natural anti inflammatory properties, which helps in preventing heart disease, lowers the risk of developing Type-2 diabetes, while boosting the cardiovascular system.
Antioxidants are the new superhero with a list of potential benefits, by just eating more select fresh fruits and vegetables.
What the Mediterranean diet consists of, are plenty of these food items such as fresh fruits and dark green leafy vegetables, which are loaded with antioxidants.
