The great advantages with this diet as opposed to some of the bizarre ones examined is that we don't have to imagine and pretend or cut out entire food groups therefore it is more likely to be sane and possible to follow without doing mad stuff.
I live on a small Greek island and I'm really sorry to have to be the one to say this but fish is not a big or even medium part of our diet. It is too expensive for most of us, the Aegean isn't full of fish, and most of us get our protein from other sources. Tourists here eat a lot of fish, but residents don't. The ACTUAL Mediterranean diet is the physical work that people have traditionally had to do in order to get adequate nutrition.
@@ianbryant Most people do eat quite a lot of meat, especially pork, just not fish and seafood. And yes we eat a lot of lentils and beans as well. I wouldn't look to grains for protein. Personally I'm obsessed with nutrition and I get a lot of protein from yogurt, cottage cheese, and chicken. If I had more money I would be buying fish also.
I am allergic to fish and seafood, so I am pleased to hear that they don't eat a lot of it. I only eat meat once a week and I am definitely not protein deficient. Like you, I'm obsessed with nutrtion as well and I believe the mediterranean diet is probaby the best and certainly the easiest to make into a lifestyle.@@mockingbirdnightingale7169
I am greek and I don't know why you say fish is expensive? I live in mainland Greece and if you go to fish market you can get great fish for a good deal . We eat fish at least 2 times a week . So , I don't think fish is too expensive.
This diet is not the med diet. This is the diet my family that lived in rural Alabama ate. Fresh vegetables, little meat, lots of water, little dairy, fresh fish caught from the river. Never had high blood pressure, never heart disease, no joint problems. Now, this diet ended in my family about 40 years ago and everybody got sick. When I went to my grandparents for supper when I was a kid we had fresh tomatoes, fresh cucumbers, fresh baked catfish, boiled potatoes, green beans.
So here's the perspective from someone who actually lives in the South of France, close to the Mediterranean. I'm a genuine flexitarian by nature, having little taste for meat and eating it rarely. I do like fish more, but that would be only once a week or so. My workplace is remote, far from a town to go and buy any food, and we don't have a staff restaurant. That means that everyone brings in their own lunch from home every day. Certainly, there are vegetables eaten and fruit, but honestly, 90% of my colleagues eat meat as the main part of their meal, and this, every day. There will often be cheese, a glass of red wine, and a yogurt for dessert (or fruit). The only nuts I ever see eaten are if we are having drinks together and nuts are on the table as nibbles. No one, ever, ever, ever, brings seeds! Those who bring bread get it fresh from the bakery every morning on their way to work. There is little ultra-processed food, and we have an hour to eat, and everyone stops for the hour. It's a sacred moment. I've lived and worked with French people for 37 years, and this is what I have seen everywhere. It's as much the lifestyle that is beneficial as the food. As to the diet, I repeat, it is heavy on meat.
Med Diet is based on traditional food, not what people are eating today. The diet in Canada has evolved in the 60+ years I've been eating. When I was a kid, processed foods weren't the norm. www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3684452/#:~:text=The%20Mediterranean%20diet%20has%20its,the%20ancient%20world%20took%20place.
The modern diets in these areas have nothing to do with the classification of the "mediterranean diet". It is simply a name attached to the sort of diet that Christopher Gardner is describing. The naming came from scientists in the mid 20th century who studied the dietary patterns in these mediterranean areas when they still largely ate what Professor Gardner is describing and had significant health benefits.
France barely passes for Mediterranean. I think most people understand the Mediterranean diet to be much more skewed towards the Spanish / Greek / Italian cuisine. I grew up in Mediterranean Spain and can tell you nuts and seeds are a large part of the diet there. Sunflower seeds particularly consumed by the fistful as a snack product. Almonds are extremely popular, too. Then you have things like toasted corn, etc.
@@jfinnie78 France 'barely passes for Mediterranean'? Try telling that to the large population who live along its more than 2000 km coastline! (Compared to the 1600 km of coastline in Spain - the rest being the Atlantic coastline!) 😉
@@wackthegood8884In terms of Mediterranean diet as a thing, yes, France barely figures. A common definition of the Mediterranean diet is "The Mediterranean diet is a diet inspired by the eating habits and traditional food typical of southern Spain, southern Italy, and Crete, and formulated in the early 1960s.[1] It is distinct from Mediterranean cuisine, which covers the actual cuisines of the Mediterranean countries. While inspired by a specific time and place, the "Mediterranean diet" was later refined based on the results of multiple scientific studies.[2]"
The main problem with *ALL* of these diets is the whole family has to be on it. It's no fun living in a house of 2 adults and 2 children but 1 person doing Keto/Mediterranean/Vegetarian etc
My father was from Korčula, a small Dalmatian island just up from Dubrovnik. I am very acquainted with the so called Mediterranean diet. Large amounts plant based food: Brussel sprouts in olive oil, kapuska which is a cabbage stew. Sardines, Bakalar which is a dried salted Cod (it stunk) & squid. He had Loads of olive oil on everything, red wine which his father made from black muscatel grapes. They never ate avocadoes! He never ate sweets or cakes. After he came out to Australia @ about age 45 paradoxically he developed Type 2 Diabetes as because he would go through ½ loaf of bread with every meal; our processed white bread is very different to the bread he had back in Yugoslavia. His father lived to over 95 back in Yugoslavia.
The Mediterranean is a big region with many, many food sources. I think it's wrong to think that meat (Especially goat and lamb) is not part of it cause it is. I came from that region and I can say unequivocally that meat, fish and poultry is big part of that diet. Shish Kabab, Shawarma, meat patties, all that is Mediterranean! Yes, people in that region walk much more than the average "westerner", but they also have much more satisfying social connection that help them live longer.
I think he kind of alluded to that at the beginning although I don’t think he emphasized it enough. Also, ‘the Mediterranean Diet’ is based on the way some groups of people in Mediterranean countries ate back in the 1950’s not how they eat today.
@@ggjr61 I can tell you, again from growing up in the middle east, that meat is the center of the meal, a good meal is not counted as a"complete meal" without a piece of meat, fish or chicken. The only reason people eat it once a week is because meat is too expensive. Not for health reason...
@@ziv2liv Did you grow up in the middle east in the 1930-60 or later? The Mediterranean Diet" describes the diet of that period, not since the world has become wealthier and meat more available and affordable.
@@juliebrown8375 Yes. I was born in 1954 so yes and moved to the US in 1984. Meat has always been a main component of that diet ever since, if one can afford it. Now again, the Mediterranean is a vast area with many people, cultures and different culinary habits, but at leat in the eastern and south part of the Mediterranean, meat (Lamb, poultry, fish and to a lesser degree beef) is a major component.
I can see the Mediterranean sea from my kitchen window, so I qualify! The main thing, I think, is that we tend to cook from scratch, and it's very varied. I would disagree with meats and fish not being the centre of a meal, they can be, and often are. But then there are lots of vegetable and legume stews and soups, and stuffed vegetables, and salads. It probably all evens out in the end. But fast-food culture is catching up with all Mediterranean countries, with the accompanying health issues.
Bingo! Avoiding ultra-processed food is Priority One. That's probably why virtually any kind of diet can demonstrate better health outcomes than a standard US diet (or standard UK diet, for that matter.) Cook your own food and you will be healthier.
Not once is mentioned that the Mediterranean food is seasonal and grown locally! That's why it's tasty and full of nutrients. People mostly cook, hardly any consume very little highly processed food. Teenagers are fat because of the McDonald's and the like.
Exactly! Of all the recommendations you can make about a healthy diet, #1 should be to make your own food from scratch---you would never put the junk in your own food that restaurants and food companies use. Having said that, I know a few people who think "home cooking" is baking chocolate chip cookies.
yup!@@miketranfaglia3986 I've been cooking like this for years - not really calling it "Mediterranean". I call it my #WTFisinthefridge meals. But I do not buy crap with labels on it, either. I buy REAL food - dry legumes (Yes I know that term because I'm a gardener too) that I soak in beer overnight before cooking the next day; I buy whole grain berries in bulk to mill into flour to make sourdough bread from or to cook in the pressure cooker for 25 min to add to my salads or grain bowls. I eat dark leafy greens and other fresh veggies & fruits & nuts and seeds. Yes, it's more work, but I learned to enjoy the preparation. It's my cooking meditation. I still make chocolate chip cookies once a week to use up sourdough discard, but I make them with freshly milled flour from rye, wheat & barley. I eat to live - not live to eat. That is basically the difference. I don't enjoy restaurants anymore. That does limit me in socializing, because here in the US THAT seems to go together. If I do go out and only drink my beer, folks look at me funny - like there's something wrong with me. I eat to live, not live to eat. It's basically a lifestyle. Now I need to find some sheep to go into the mountains with. ;)
No question that the dominance of ultra-processed and fast foods has paved the way to so many people eating less and less plants, more meat, more fried foods. There are a couple more issues at play as well, I feel. 1) Antibiotics for humans and animals we eat. Bad for gut health and immunity. 2) Food is far more convenient these days compared to when I was young. I'm 71. Used to be you had to go to the store, shop and cook the food. Then the family ate at the dinner table. Everyone cleaned their plates. Most kids wanted to be excused from the table asap because being with parents after a day of work wasn't always joyful. No in-between meal snacks. Dessert was an apple or jello. 3) People knew well that ice cream and other sweets were bad back in the day. The thinnest people (my parents and grandma) were very reserved about eating sweets for fear of getting sugar diabetes. I remember hearing about this many times. We drank iced tea at dinner with sugar. We had one piece of toast with margarine no jelly, one egg, one bacon or sausage, no biscuits, honey, gravy. We ate potatoes, but no pizza, rice, pasta, or mac and cheese. I suspect this was because my family ancestry was English, Irish, Scottish and they knew little about such foods. In these times, people tended to stick closely to family culture. We were Irish, English, Scottish, so we never ate rice, pasta, pizza or Asian food. Green salad, meat (usually beef), potatoes, and one green or yellow vegetable were it. We ate were broccoli, carrots, summer squash, corn, spinach, collards, green beans, black eyed peas, green peas. Salad was iceberg lettuce, tomato, celery, green pepper, and later, avocado. We never ate bread at supper, only toast for breakfast or a sandwich for lunch. When I was in high school (late 1960s) we did have raisin bran, homemade hamburgers and french fries, fried chicken, ham, pork chops, pork and beans, salami lunch meat, hot dogs, and tater tots occasionally. We never went out to restaurants except for Mexican food on rare occasion. After supper and homework, we often sat outside after dark...until TV got better shows. 4) Everyone got outside more often. I walked to school every school day, even when it rained and I had to wear a dress and dress shoes and carry books without a backpack. If it rained, I wore a raincoat and galoshes. School was several blocks to 2 miles away. When I got home, I went outside to see friends and did homework later. In the summer, I went swimming almost everyday. I was taught to swim at 8, swim laps and dive when I was 11. I was taught to fish and hunt dove at 14. If we were at the lake or beach, we swam or walked around hunting for shells, rocks or fossils or water-skied. Few had a gym membership. Many people walked, biked, golfed, played tennis, badminton, volleyball, softball or water skied. 5) There were fewer people, cars, busses. No traffic. People often left work on time and had a life outside of work. But when they worked, they worked hard. They often did their own yard work. 6) Every year during Lent, we didn't eat meat on Fridays. No fasting but we didn't eat before church on Sundays.
Thr theory in your first sentence does not hold up outside of the countries bordering the Mediterranean Sea. Not many foods are grown locally in cold climates. Tomatoes, peppers, eggplants, and other nightshades as well as cucurbits like squashes and cucumbers require warm temperatures and regular moisture or they die. And then there are olives. And seafood? Nothing local or seasonal here in landlocked New Mexico in winter! Which leaves cactus, mesquite pods, beef, and creosote, pretty much. WE do get food trucked up from Mexico, but it is out of season items grown in huge hydroponic greenhoue factories and generally not very tasty or nutritous. I imagine it is even more bleak in Nevada.
I have a theory. I think the healthiest food in the world is the so called TRADITIONAL food. I wished scientists and doctors focused more on traditional food. 1. Traditional food was created or invented usually in times of hunger, poverty, crisis, war, plague, disease, etc. Traditional food is survival food, the food that stood the test of time, the food that allowed entire populations to survive periods of hunger. So traditional food needs to be healthy, nutritious, cheap and abundant, based on local ingredients. 2. But traditional food usually can taste very bad, sometimes being outright vile and repugnant. Most countries in the world usually have some kind of traditional food. In times of plenty most people tend to underestimate, look down, dismiss or even despise traditional food because it doesn't taste good. But that is really a big mistake, because that is the food that humanity needs to rely on in times of hunger, and also to remain healthy. So it is really important to keep and preserve traditional food, no matter how bad that food may be. In Sweden there is a fermented fish called surströmming, that is considered by many to be the stinkiest food in the world. How is it possible that people eat such a thing? But surströmming has existed for hundreds of years, is nutritious, healthy and cheap. And most certainly it was invented by starving people in times of hunger and poverty. Many people make fun of surströmming because of its foul smell, but very few people seem to realize that surströmming is a super-food that literally saved entire populations from hunger. 3. The biggest problem about traditional food is that it may difficult to replicate in other countries, because it may not taste good and the ingredients may not be as cheap or abundant in different regions or countries. For example it is often said that olive oil is healthy, but olive oil can be very expensive outside Europe. Japanese traditional food uses no olive oil at all. 4. It is ironic that unhealthy food is only available in times of plenty, while in times of hunger the only food available is traditional food. So the richer the country, the more unhealthy the diet becomes. A poor person on the other hand needs to eat healthy food, otherwise he won't survive. So paradoxically, the poorer the person, the healthier the diet, because a poor person simply can not afford to eat unhealthy food. While traditional food is based on local, cheap, abundant ingredients, unhealthy food is usually based on expensive, imported, exotic ingredients. While older generations try to encourage traditional food, younger generations tend to despise traditional food and prefer modern, expensive, unhealthy food. 5. The United States unfortunately does not have a firmly established traditional food, simply because the country is relatively young and has not suffered any major war or disaster or famine or disease. So most of its diet is based on European culture, which may not be the most appropriate for the region. In my opinion the US should look into native American culture, because they probably have a very strong traditional food culture most appropriate for the local conditions.
I was on some sort of a Keto Diet, and struggling loosing weight. Many could argue i was doing it wrong, but the fact remain, i was not loosing weight, hard time finding stuff to eat, etc. Then i switched to Mediterranean diet, and more precisely the Mind diet which is a mix with the Dash diet. Easy to find stuff to eat, not boring, focusing on quality ingredients. Four months later i lost 30 pounds.
I did keto for a year. Very strict. Logged everything. Didn't do all the extra almond flour stuff. Or the fat bombs. My diet was very basic. Meat and some veg. I lost maybe 25lbs in that while year. Being discouraged, I didn't a high veg (mostly salads) low low meat, and lost 40-50lbs in a matter of months. And I've kept it off. Some ppl don't do well on all meat. I'm definitely one of them.
The people in Crete are Greek Orthodox and they did the fasting with their church. The church fasting seasons are essentially vegan plus no olive oil or wine, and the feast days everything including dairy and meat.
What hasn't been mentioned here is iodine.Being surrounded by the Med means inhaling the iodine filled sea air everyday. Omega 3 through eating fish and locally made pure virgin olive oil, vitamin D3 from the sun for 8 to 9 months of the year, swimming and generally family oriented. Not being alone.
In Italy, pasta, pizza, bread (all white flour!) white rice (never brown), lots of meat and preserved meats like salami, all these things are forbidden by the American notion of the Mediterranean diet! Ancel Keys wrote about the Poppi diet, but the village of Poppi lives on white flour pasta. The US/UK ‘Mediterranean’ diet includes things like avocado and salmon, which were quite unknown in Italy until recently. You need a different name. Whole grains unheard of in Italy, except for trendy wholefood shops following US/UK diet recommendations!
Been living in Italy for over 30 years and have seen an increase in "healthier" options, ie more organic products, lower fat, artisan bakeries etc but also in highly refined foods, microwave ready, big increase in selection of things like breakfast cereals, sugary yoghurts, milk based snacks, biscuits and baked sweet snacks. Fast food outlets have spread like crazy. Can't help but wonder about the quality of mass produced extra virgin olive oil at 8-9€ a bottle compared to farm produced oil at 3x the price. The older generation on the area where I live have a staple diet of egg pasta, mince ragù, hard seasoned cheeses, white flour, lard, salame and sausages, overcooked veg. (Medicines by the handful.)
I appreciate the mention that this is an approach to lifestyle that includes improved exercise and sleep habits, in addition to nutrition. This syncs with Zoe's message that a short walk after a meal will lower blood glucose response (do I have that right?). Thanks, Zoe!
I live in Bali and in the recent tourism madness / plague the thing that keeps me still here is the continuous availability of all kinds of vegetables and fruits imaginable. Fish and nuts are one the plate regularly and some pork and chicken occasionally. I shop in the wholesale market where the farmers from the mountains come every morning with their fresh produce. They sell from their small trucks. That's the closest I've ever been to whole natural food. Zero industrial farming.
Wouldn’t it be wonderful is Zoe did a side series of what this actually looked like and how people could start to incorporate this into their life. Bringing together all aspect of the information you give. Recipes , movements, sleep, a beginner simple guide. I think people require much more guidance than you think due to all the confusion out there.
Many good points in this one; the "Mediterranean Diet" is really not well defined, and in most cases does not correspond with what is actually eaten in any Med countries. I'm Italian-American, have lots of friends in Italy, and have traveled there extensively. Ditto for southern France, Spain, and Portugal. There is a lot of meat consumption in these countries! Lots of pork, and an almost religious worship of steak (Bistecca alla Fiorentina, anyone?) Not as much fish as most folks seem to assume (though tons of sardines and anchovies in Spain and Portugal.) And, of course, lots of refined grains. News flash---Italians eat a lot of pasta and bread and rice and polenta, and they're all highly refined grains. Vast quantities of (excellent) cheese, and lard spread directly on bread the way Dr. Gardner might use his tofu spread. There are none of these mythical "whole grains" to be found. Wheat berry salads do not exist in Italy. No one eats any kind of trendy fermented foods in Italy. Almost all Italians eat a diet comprise largely of what we would call processed foods (cold cuts, cheeses, sauces, etc.), but virtually no ultra-processed food. And they virtually all eat this way every day, with loads of coffee and wine for lunch and dinner. Then they go for a walk... One study I would like to see someone take on: as there are huge regional differences in diets within Italy (north vs. south, coastal vs Piedmont vs mountains), are there differences in health outcomes?
The ‘Mediterranean Diet’ is based on studies from the 1950’s and included other lifestyle behaviors such as exercise. People in the Mediterranean countries don’t eat that way today which is becoming a problem for them.
I live in the Veneto and I can verify that meat is a major component of the local diet, as it is in Emilia Romagna and other regions in the North and Centre of Italy.
@@reejan8109 Italians use many different flours for many different applications---even chestnut flour in season for special regional pastas; but they're not whole grains by any stretch.
There is an Italian longevity researcher who spoke about the differences in health outcomes between northern and southern Italy! I always wondered this too. He said although southern Italians live longer, they are also very frail and suffer more hip fractures and such whereas northern Italy may have more cardiovascular problems but they have stronger bones which make a difference in long-term health outcomes. Ugh I wish I could remember his name
When it comes to nutrition, exercise and health (for the most part), YOU GET WHAT YOU GIVE. Put in a good effort consistently you get good results. Shopping should not be confusing because you should be buying things with no label to decode. Cooking required for health and a good performance level.
so well said! “simple because there’s no label to decode”! exactly! I moved to the US over a year ago - omg! isles and isles and isles of plastic/artificial/dead stuff. and yes, I cook. and yes it does take time. but I love to cook: it is my time for meditation, creativity, reflection, time spent with nice pots and utensils
Well, I was always amazed with other people talk about Med diet because I live in Spain, and yes they eat fruit and veg, but fish is so expensive and they do not eat fish as often as pork for example. Every day, they will eat some sort of port, tortilla, potatoes, cheese etc. And a lot of bread.
Also ham (with a lot of salt, fuet, lot of salt etc. It really is not true that they eat "healthy". Maybe people in villages eat as people think of med diet, but not in towns. Really not.
My experience in Italy and France was, white pasta and white bread make up a significant portion of the "Mediterranean diet". Yes, the bread is usually fresh from a bakery, but it's still often white rather than wholemeal or whole-grain. The pasta is made from durum wheat (semolina), but it's white. A French baguette is usually white. And pastries are popular (made with white flour and fat).
“Typical” white flour baguette sandwiches send me on a blood sugar crash 😭 I could never live off that and be functional. High quality semolina pasta I can handle without crashing. Thankfully!
At least in Adria region, the soup is a must ( not stew, but light one with vegetables, not always with meat) and pickled vegetables. The soup fills the stomach, therefore the main course portion is smaller. Although, in recent 20 years the meat percentage skyrocketed ..
Only place I ran across the term was in King James Version Bible book of Daniel. As young man captive in Babylon, he challenged the officer in charge of male captives to allow he and his closest friends to delay the "acculturation" diet prescribed for them by 10 days. In that time, he ate pulses and water, not meat and wine from the kitchen that served the Babylonian king. At the end of 10 days, he was determined to be healthier, and quicker of wit than those on the King's diet!
Although Nutritionists, botanists, and other experts might differ, as far as most people are concerned beans, peas, lentils, pulses, and legumes are more or less the same thing
The problem is as Simon Hill so correctly said, you can find research and evidence to back up just about anything. Science does not establish the absolute truths of our existence despite many wanting that and many influencers trading on that with well chosen research
Lifestyle exactly! Omg I feel like this is the most overlooked aspect. I have travelled extensively over the greek islands for last 30 years. I remember watching old ladies, probably in their 70s - 80s manually till the ground, or dig trenches of the small holding. I'd look at their cottages they are basic. It's like going back 100 years or more. That's the Mediterranean diet, you are physically active and strong out of lifestyle demands and eat simply.
That's because they have been "brainwashed" to believe that for commercial/political reasons. American interests have been pushing grain/plant-based products for decades. Cheap to produce, cheap to turn into hyper-palatable ultra-processed products which they sell at a very nice profit. As a bonus, they make and keep people sick which puts billions of dollars into the pharmaceutical companies. Of course meat (beef, lamb, pork) is a very important part of the diet. It has been so for thousands of years. Meat is preferred, vegs are secondary (for flavor, color). The same way that it is in most parts of the world.
I was a vegan at one time. I was lacking certain nutrients and was very fatigued. I went to Mediterranean diet. Never eating red meats. Feel so much better
just to share my approach to cooking. It might sound a bit strange, but works great for me: I cook by recipes very rarely. mainly when I do my traditional Ukrainian dishes or bake things. I normally stock up on various proteins (diff kinds of meat and fish) and a ton of veggies, greens, fruits and diff herbs and spices. Then I see how I feel - what protein I’d like to have and in what form (braised, sautéed, stewed (I fry very rarely)). Then I see what veggies and what form I’d like to have with that protein (a salad or braised or steamed). I follow no recipes, just do what I feel like. and use whatever spices and herbs I feel like. Yes, sometimes I may screw up (for example added zucchini too early yesterday and it became mushy. technical stuff that would be addressed in a recipe but I missed or didn’t think of), but overall the food is very tasty (imo of course))) For desserts it is dried fruits and nuts, sometimes parmesan or other fancy cheese goes great with my Turkish coffee as well. Or dark chocolate. or fruit. And I do not buy things that I don’t want to be eating - to not be seduced. So I am not a great host for many of my friends and relatives for that reason))) just wanted to share (I realize though that it works bc I live by myself. when I had family, it was a toooootly dif story)))
@@ep0nym0us28 That's exactly what I do and call "intuitive cooking" or "#wtfisinmyfridge" meals. I do "perimeter shopping" - avoiding the junk food isles in the middle of the grocery store. I don't eat a lot of meat anymore - getting my protein mostly from plants, eggs and dairy. I make my own kefir & Kombucha, Sauerkraut & Sourdough, as well as Tofu & Tempeh. Eating & cooking this way makes me happy. My husband humors me and eats mostly the same ...with the additional steak! He knows how to BBQ - I think that's a great teamwork way to cook and works great for us.
It's absolutely untrue that small amounts of meat are eaten in Mediterranean countries. In Italy large amounts of meat, including red and processed meats are eaten on a daily basis. I had Parma ham and salami on a daily basis growing up in Italy in the 70s and 80s. We often had steak, sausages, burgers, lamb, pork. And there were no avocados there at the time. Nuts and seeds were not widely consumed. Quite a few fried foods were part of my diet. Pasta is always of the white variety. I always find it weird when I hear the Mediterranean diet described the way it is in this video. And obesity is increasing in Mediterranean countries too.
I have seen that people who live a long life, eat simply - not indulgent - oats, some dairy, stews with meat, fish, fruit, and don't over indulge cakes and sweets but aren't uptight about having a little and they don't get drunk but can take a little alcohol if they want and small portions. We eat too much. I do and it's bad for you.They also have very regular simple lives which includes walking working and relaxing
I'm so happy in my country we have an abundance of unprocessed grains like millet, wheat berry, buckwheat and barley and I have to say, as a kid I hated those foods, now I start to appreciate them way more)
PSA: The Mediterranean diet does NOT refer to the modern cuisine of the Mediterranean like the processed meat and refined grains common in Italy. It refers to eating patterns in places like Crete way back in the 1950s. It is well established that these cuisines have changed dramatically - the diet of Spain today, for example, is as 'Mediterranean' as Poland in terms of consumption of whole grains, legumes, nuts, fish etc
Thank you for this episode! Really appreciate Tim, Sarah, Will, and Christopher as contributors to Zoe podcast. Seeing them keeps me motivated! I just got to a point of eating 21 different plants in one day and meeting the RDA of 25 g fiber for women for 1375 calories including some lean animal protein. Still not eating much olive oil though. I'll try that after I adapt to this number of diverse whole food plants for a couple of months. Eating a few different raw unsalted mixed nuts daily though (thanks to Tim Specter's nut jar episode). Eating barley, lentils, beans, greens, steel-cut oats, whole high fiber fruits daily, but dropped the bread, crackers, sweets, ultra-processed foods. Got 40 pounds to lose still. We'll see how this plays out. I'm hopeful.
Remember that the “Mediterranean Diet” traditionally included more meat than some would have us believe….ie : Pigs, Wild Boar, Sheep, Rabbit, Poultry etc (various) Game and Wild birds and of course plenty of fish & sea food. All combined with seasonal foraged plants and of course (as Prof Chris points out) the climate and the (non-gym) exercise…often in the form of trudging with loads up and down hills…and hard agricultural & maritime labour!
Unfortunatelly Greeks are obsessed with meat, but at least we do eat beans and 'ladera' okra and green beans once or twice a week.. (I eat them every day 🙂)
With tinned fish and beans/lentils it can be quite quick to cook Mediterranean - salads can be even quicker (and it is easy to buy pre-prepared salads that fit - if you want to spend the money).
We have been 100% whole food plant based for 5 years. We do include modest amounts of avocado, nuts, and seeds. After 6 months of eating this way, my husband's fatty liver, kidney disease, and asthma were gone. 5 years later, those diseases still no longer plague him. That's enough for us! And by the way, our food is delicious!
Never been fat in my life, followed the Med diet almost unwillinlgy throught my whole adult life since I am Turkish and I always hesitated from simple carbs due to weight control for sportive performance(climbing/mountaineering/running), and for the past 2 years I have been into keto. The one certain thing about both diets is that they are extremely delicious hahah :D All the best!
Thanks to your video, I'm beginning to understand what Mediterranean die is. Or I think it may mean different things but now I see the point of recommending the 'good form' of a Mediterranean diet. I appreciate the clear explanation of Dr Gardner. And I love his lack of dogmatism and his 'buena onda'.
I don't know about the Mediterranean diet (because it includes the nutritional habits of many suboptimal cultures) but the truth is that the Greek diet is what Hippocrates, the father of medicine, ate and lived for 91 years which for that period would be equivalent to 120 years+ today. It is important to remember that what Hippocrates knew then and we finally begin to rediscover now, is that health begins in the gut, promotes the functions of a healthy liver, and also protects the brain. The Mediterranean diet might be a superior option to SAD (standard American diet) but is not the optimal diet. The optimal diet is the one based on ketones and unfortunately, the Med diet has too many legumes and crappy carbs (such as pasta and grains - refer to the previous comment of the Italians being a suboptimal culture in nutritional matters) to induce healthy ketogenesis in your body.
Some time ago, a year or so, I came across an article about why doctors recommended the Mediterranean diet. Surprise answer? People will stick with it. I don't know enough to say if it is absolutely the best diet but I do know that it is balanced, not full of items that you have to hunt down and nothing is prohibited. Just eat more of this and less of that. Lots of veg and some plant based proteins and some animal based proteins. Some of every food group.
The Greek diet includes a lot of cheese from sheep and goats, Greeks are some of the highest consumers of cheese in the world. I was there recently and and was also drinking fresh goats milk straight from my cousins goats every morning.
A mediterranean diet could be is as high as 50% from fat? When I think of the mediterranean diet I think of the way Dr Ancel Keys studied it post WWII, and I don't think it was anywhere near that high in fat because they simply couldn't afford it.
i had a an italian girlfried back in the day. her and her whole family had everyday for dinner whether fish, red meat or chicken as their main course alongside some veggies
Great series that I will revisit as a resource in the future. And some headshakes in the Comments of other chapters are priceless, especially for the carnivore and keto segments.
Meat (beef, lamb, pork, fish) is a very important part of the diet for the people in every Mediterranean country. It has been so for thousands and thousands of years. Meat is always preferred, vegs are secondary (for flavor, color). The same way that it is, and has always been, in most of the world. Only the very poor ate mostly grains and vegs -- not by choice, but because of their circumstances. Anyone trying to tell you differently is surely trying to deceive you, or simply regurgitating what they have heard. Unfortunately, inexperienced people tend to believe the propaganda, and they have suffered the consequences The U.S.A. and Britain are probably the two sickest countries in the world, they are at the top of lists of just about every metabolic disease (heart disease, diabetes, cancer, arthritis, etc., etc.). Why would anyone want to follow their ideas about what a healthy diet is? They push for people to eat more grains and vegetables, and to reduce meat and saturated fat. Riiiight, because that has worked out so well for the people who have followed those guidelines for the past few decades. [smh] It's absurd, sad, and horrifying.
It’s a way of leaving not just the diet or macros. Let’s not forget the sun ☀️ and the sea 🌊 My parents have never eaten UPF or snaked , walked to work and spent time on the beach. It’s a way of life
Mediterranean name seems very Euro centric. Plant based would include Japanese meals, beans grown in Latin America, corn, tofu, chilies, avocadoes, quinoa.
Relax. It was a name derived decades ago and has added a lot of foods sourced from around the globe. Christopher mentions avocados and quinoa in the podcast and is a big fan of tofu.
The social connectedness among, and within, Mediterranean cultures is another health-enhancing, third-variable factor that wasn’t discussed, which can boost the benefits of the ‘Mediterranean Diet’. In other words, it is not just the food that Mediterranean people eat, it is their overall lifestyle, including better social connectedness among, within Mediterranean cultures that results in health benefits among ‘Mediterranean Diet’, which is actually an entirely different overall lifestyle, than diet difference alone. We, in the U.S., are mostly DISCONNECTED socially from out community and/or our family, which harms our physical health (increased diabetes; heart disease). Loneliness is now equivalent to smoking a pack of cigarettes per day, per the U.S. Surgeon General.
1) When the Mediterranean diet was originally studied on Crete,these people were not only physically active but they regularly fasted in the Roman Catholic way. This significant fasting fact is no longer mentioned. 2) Other studies found people tended not to lose weight. I am certain Christopher follows this diet because he has a small barrel of fat around his waist. From my own studies ,I conclude the whole plant "Nutritarian " diet by Dr. Fuhrman delivers the best health, disease reversals and longevity.
They are Greek Orthodox (Eastern Orthodox), not Roman Catholic. Orthodox fasting is different than Catholic fasting. There is a fasting calendar online if you are curious.
I'm getting very confused by the Thumbnail titles on Zoe videos. If I just went on those, like many do, I'd be totally confused about what is broadly the right diet.
I'm really glad I found the Zoe Podcast and would possibly take part in the progam, if it was available in my country. The focus on gut health and a diverse diet, the fact that all food groups are evaluated without an agenda and that the podcast stays clear of the diet wars - that's what I love about the podcast. This series has been disappointing though. Understandably, there's a limit to the amount of information you can give in short episodes like this. At the same time it's probably a challenge to create evermore content after already having said everything you meant to say in the beginning. Still, I simply didn't feel well informed after listening. Dr Gardner's agenda (he seem's a kind guy) is obvious. He makes Mediterranean diets out to be whole foods plant based. This term (WFPB) is a brainchild of T. Colin Campbell and is used by the Physicians Committee and associated vegan (often low-fat/oil) doctors (Barnard, Greger, Fuhrman ... and Gardner). Mediterranean diets are not whole foods plant based diets, they are real foods diets, diverse seasonal foods diets based in proper home cooking using regional produce. Foods of animal origin are highly appreciated in Mediterranean diets, though consumed in moderation. Also, white breads and other baked goods based on refined flour are favoured. Good luck to Dr. Gardner trying to find whole grain bread with seeds in the Mediterranean. Avocado, quinoa and other plant foods originating in South America are not traditional components in Mediterranean diets. They have only very recently been introduced into European stores as part of the super food wave. Gardner's representation of Mediterranean diets is an American vegan's brainfart and completely insincere. I'm an omnivore and happen to eat very little meat or fish and include a lot of vegetarian and vegan meals in my diet. Regarding the earlier episodes of this series, I would have liked to understand more about paleo and carnivore diets and why people manage to get all kinds of symptoms under control with them, how carnivores even after eating just meat for years don't drop down dead (since according to Zoe fiber and plant foods are so essential for health, and red meat is so detrimental to health -- I frankly would die of constipation, anxiety and disgust after a week on the carnivore diet), and why some people don't manage to thrive on a more plant based diet/why they have problems with so many plant foods, (even the ancient or gluten free) grains and pseudo grains. But then none of this really is what Zoe is about. Please stay true to yourselves.
In my Italian family, lunch could never start without a big chunk of Parmasano on the table plus some slices of a fatty salami. Sooner or later, the health of my ancestors showed the consequences of this excess fat.
In Israel we ate tons of vegetables, cheese, humus, and bread. Fish and eggs too. Very little red meat. Most people didn’t have meat every day. People get wierded out when I have vegetables for breakfast. But, that's how I grew up.
Finally someone said this. It’s not all about food it’s all about lifestyle. You will get sick if you hate moving even if you don’t eat anything. The other side of diet from Mediterranean countries is dose of happiness. And all discussions is about food. Big mistake….
You’re conflating Mediterranean diet with cuisine and it’s clearly confusing a lot of people in the comments who have witnessed people in the Mediterranean eat lots of meat, dairy and processed bread / pasta.
Can you do a program about high levels of purines alfatokins and oxalates that are in vegetables legumes fish etc.I have liver cirrhosis and have had to be very very selective in what nuts beans and fish I can eat.I wish the info from podcasts and hospitals was more precise and less generic than it is.
What do you mean by "strict" ? Strict for health reasons, or strict for ethical reasons? Example..."no oil", not a drop as a famous doc says. That must be for ethical reasons because no one seems to have ever done a study showing the benefit of going from a few sprays or drops in a pan to instead using "zero oil". At least I've never seen a single study showing a benefit of removing the last few drops. These days even people like Ornish and Kim Williams allow for small amounts of oil.
Another “Mediterranean Diet” video that fails to detail the copious amounts of sausage and pork fat that is consumed throughout the Mediterranean and invoke why France was dropped by Ancel Keys. Sure, olives, sure vegetables, sure fruits, sure to all of that, I mean, variety is great. But my travels through Spain, and France, and Italy also included a healthy helping of fat (pork fat, butter, cheeses, etc.). These are always expressed as things to eat less of “on Mediterranean,” when native Spaniards have no desire to eat less of them. A friend of the family, from Marseille eats the same cheeses my doctors beg me to stop eating and in volumes I couldn’t match. I suspect our current dogma around saturated fats is more convoluted than cardiovascular specialists care to admit.
No, I think I got it. “It probably includes modest amounts of meat…,” was Chris’s best, most honest lines. This exposes the fact that the “Mediterranean Diet” is another diet cult, with no basis in a centered reality. Chris discusses getting “dinged” for points as though Spaniards and Italians are carrying around the equivalent of a weight watchers app and tracking points. All this to say, we created a fad diet that represents very little of reality (as Chris actively tries to wash over how much meat is consumed) and can basically be summarized to, eat a variety of foods, not too much of any one thing, get outside, and have deep friendships.
As you’re obviously aware the Mediterranean Diet is based on how many people in the region ate in the 1950’s not today. They ate that way because they were poor not for health reasons but it appears to have worked out for them. Unfortunately for today’s population they can afford more and are beginning to follow the US in health outcomes. As far as Ancel Keys and France are concerned it’s my understanding France was dropped due to a lack of support in the country.
So they were Sheppard's tending their flocks and not eating much meat? He did hit the nail on head though, if you are eating properly, it is very hard to eat enough
Also in Italy pasta is very much a weekly on your diet or even daily but not whole grain and within regional towns and even villages the med diet varies my family live in campania not by the sea so don’t eat that much fish except salted cod true that breakfast quite often is light mid day perhaps a main meal the med diet is so diffrent yet there basic foods that all meds eat
original mediterranean diet(diet of post-ww2 peasants from crete who lived longer and had 20 times less frequent heart attacks, than us citizens) was almost exclusively plant based with negligible amount of fish. few wealthy people on crete were eating meat and had normal(non-rare) rate of heart disease. and that diet almost certainly didn't contain avocados(crete is far away from mexico). and surely it was lower on fat than anything people call "mediterranean diet" now(peasants can't afford drinking olive oil). almost nobody eats original mediterranean diet, including modern people of crete, so now their heart attack rates are closer to americans
Unless someone lives in the Mediterranean, eats seasonally, whole fresh food they prepared and cooked, looking at how we eat culturally (not just about race) and in a way that it is processed is more important than a label.
I love mexican food - are refried beans full of fiber? They taste so yummy but they look like, and taste like, they should be bad for you (added sugar?).
Yes they are full of fiber however they are traditionally made with lard which is a saturated fat so undesirable. They can be made with unsaturated fats but you may have to make them yourself.
But in the Mediterranean they love BREAD… “pulverised wheat” with water and salt and yeast (or maybe wild yeast), maybe olive oil… It confuses me this is a bit of a contradiction! What happened to Tims love of sourdough bread? I’m starting to get really confused by these podcasts!!
Take a look at the ingredients in a loaf of store bought bread, like Wonder Bread, for ecample. How many words on there do you recognize? Quite often, I bake my own bread. There is 1 kind of sugar(yeasted bread almost always has a sugar added to it to help the yeast to make the bread rise) store bought bresd often has more than 1 sugar in it. Anything that ends in ose is usually a sugar. And there are preservatives, usually a ton. And who knows how those preservatives act in your body, especially if you eat that bread daily. Home made bread, there is none. This is just 2 examples of how good fresh bread differs from the store bought stuff. There are others as well, but those 2 are likely the biggest.
@@monicadechering9489 I also make my own bread but this guy is anti all bread basically… I’ve never heard him make a concession for home baked bread or sourdough with wholemeal flour. He talks about eating whole wheat berries (not a good bread substitute) would be more like having barley instead of rice or something like that!
Avocado in the Mediterranean ? Since when 😅. Grew up in southern France, on the Mediterranean and it makes me laugh each time people talk about the ‘Mediterranean ‘ diet. We had meat at every meal - lots of chicken soup (poule au pot), beef soup (pot au feu), Little pasta or potatoes, fish, … 3 meals a day, good wholesome food. Did I mention animal products at EVERY meal? But sorry, no avocado, no flax , no quinoa of fancy stuff…
Completely false and misleading that mediterranean diets are vegetarian. I'm mediterranean. We meat, fish, legumes, vegetales in proportionate amounts. Also, avocados are originally from america, so not a common vegetable in a typical mediterranean diet. I would have expected more rigurosity from the guest due to his experience, and from Zoe.
Thanks a million for all what you are doing. I wonder if you could talk about raw vegan diet. I have been doing it for about 4 months. But I dont know if it is really healthy.
I suspect that that diet is a bit niche for the purposes of this series. I know they included Carnivore but that is hot on social media right now, I would be thrilled if they looked at any sort of 100% plant based diet.
I’m currently doing the raw vegan diet right now and it’s not easy. It requires a lot of discipline as I’m sure you can relate to. I think I’m only doing to do it for this month of January. I keep thinking of eating some cooked food at times. Raw food is boring 😖. The reason I’m doing this diet now is to cleanse my body. The first time I did the raw food diet was about 20 years ago. I was 50 years old and I did it for a year and a half. It was basically an experiment and it was transforming. My health improved significantly. My allergies disappeared, my aches and pains disappeared. I felt very healthy. I had incredible energy and I felt like a teenager again. However, I felt it was unsustainable because raw food doesn’t have a lot of calories so I was always eating. If you are working during this diet, it can be very inconvenient. You can’t just take breaks at work to go eat. Yet, I discovered that if anything goes wrong with your health, this is the diet you want to fall back on, our natural human diet, raw fruit and vegetables. We are not herbivores. While we can be omnivores at times, we thrive ideally on a raw fruit/ vegetable diet. Herbivores eat grass and other plants, those are not us.
Is Christopher Gardner really believing postprandial peaks in the insulin and glucose make a difference?!? That is: do those spikes in insulin/glucose make more of a difference than the substantial and undisputed decrease in calorie consumption induce by more fiber rich - and therefore less palatable - foods? The latter seems to be such a more powerful and documented mechanism of action when promoting health. I really do not understand from this or any other video why peaks in insulin or glucose should be primarily involved in health outcomes, when you know a certain dietary pattern will lead to a sustained caloric intake. At the very least, the effect of peaks in insulin and glucose will be strongly confounded by the effect of reduced caloric intake.
No, it would be scare mongering and the risk is to a small number re breast cancer. If you want a slobbering meat eater to demonise plants theres plenty on here.
How romantic. Mediterranean diet, like Turkey with the second worst diet in Europe, behind Germany...and Italy now with a child obesity problem... Live and work hard like a peasant, you'll do fine...
I always feel like there’s an atomic bomb in my gut after eating beans. Awful. And soya is the worst, I thought I’ll explode, and so painful too! I never get gassy from eating meat and veg.
It is possible that the introduction to a food that is novel to you might have some strong side effects at first. I would talk to a nutritionist, but maybe start with small amount of beans at first. and slowly increase them in your diet.
@@peterz53it’s not novel for me. Soya was - and I didn’t realise I was eating soya until that bomb inside of me was ready to explode. I found out later that that Chinese restaurant was entirely soya-based. No meat. They tricked me. When it comes to beans - I love them, but unless I’m at home by myself where I can fart all day long - it’s simply deadly for my gut, if I have to hold all that gas inside.
To say that they eat whole grains in the Mediterranean seems to be an American phantasy and it is mostly nonsense. No matter if in Spain, in Italy, in France or in Greece, they eat WHITE BREAD, baked at the same day, and they eat WHITE PASTA.
Unfortunately, those of us who are kidney stone producers have problems with all of the high oxalate foods that make up the core of this diet. I think quinoa is particularly high.
