Most people are aware that the Mediterranean Diet is one of the healthiest out there. It yields a vast number of benefits, from extending our lifespans and sharpening our brain, to helping us lose weight and yes, improving our cardiovascular health.
If you have a family history of heart disease, or simply want to make sure your heart is as healthy as possible, the Mediterranean diet has a lot of potential benefits. Here’s 3 tips on how you can use this incredible diet to help benefit your heart.
One of the reasons why it is much easier to keep to the Mediterranean diet than other diets is because fat has not been stripped out of it. Instead of using unhealthy fats that can clog arteries and cause problems for the body, the Mediterranean diet uses olive oil and fatty fish as its source of dietary fats.
Studies have shown that people who consume half a tablespoon or more of olive oil every day have a 15% lower risk of having any kind of cardiovascular disease and a 21% lower risk of coronary heart disease.
That’s a big benefit for such a small change!
Remember that healthy heart checkmark on the front of whole grain cheerio’s boxes? They get that mark because of the whole grains the cereal is made with. Whole grains have a great many benefits to the heart and switching to them can reduce your risk of heart disease by up to 30%.
The Mediterranean diet is packed with examples of whole grains, which makes it an easy and simple choice to include in your diet.
It might raise your eyebrow to see this on the list but eating together is a huge part of the Mediterranean diet. There’s also good evidence to support that eating alone can be bad for your heart. A study published in 2016 found that women who ate alone were 2.58 times more likely to have Angina, a symptom of coronary artery disease.
This study was conducted only in women, but even if you are a man, it makes sense to make a simple change to your lifestyle and eat with your family instead. Eating together has a lot of benefits, and heart health is just one of them.
Studies have also found that those who eat together tend to consume fewer calories (leading to weight loss) and that eating alone was linked to depression. Eating with your family, or a friend, is a simple change that can help make your day brighter—and healthier.
If you’re unsure about whether whole grains will taste good, or perhaps don’t have anyone to “Eat together” with, we invite you to come to Aladdin’s and share a meal with us. Our Mediterranean cuisine is packed with healthy and nutritious ingredients that will help fill you up and keep you healthy.
We take pride in our wonderful food, service, and the good health it can provide for you, your family, and yes, your heart.
https://www.everydayhealth.com/heart-health/is-eating-alone-bad-for-your-heart/
Every year a panel of 27 experts review over 40 common diets, and rank them in terms of health, how easy they are to follow, and how likely a person is to lose weight on them. For the past 5 years in a row, the Mediterranean diet has come in first place every single time.
The Mediterranean diet takes the top slot each year for several reasons, the most important being that it is a safe and sensible choice. Many diets are not sustainable because they rely on taking away a key nutrient for the body.
In the past fats, calories, and carbs have been shamed for being the cause of weight gain—when an actuality they are a macronutrient the body needs. Rather than excluding a large part of your diet and trying to suffer on one small thing, the Mediterranean diet focuses on inclusion.
This diet encourages you to fill your plate with fruits, vegetables and nuts, with some lean meats on the side. The diet doesn’t restrict your calories or make you leave the table feeling hungry, instead focusing on healthy foods instead of limited foods.
This is sustainable. No one wants to live their whole life feeling hungry, and starving yourself often leads to binge eating and other poor decision making skills later. By filling yourself, but with quality foods that won’t cause you any harm, you’re more likely to stay on the diet and lose weight.
The Mediterranean diet is also rich in flavor, and offers a variety of benefits besides weight loss. People who follow the Mediterranean diet tend to have better heart health, mental health, and live longer lives.
What’s more is that if you have specific dietary preferences, you don’t have to give up the foods you like—most dishes can be adapted to fit a Mediterranean style.
Not sure about the Mediterranean diet? Sometimes the easiest way to dip your toe in and see if its right for you is to have someone else to cook for you. At Aladdin’s, we welcome you to our restaurant and invite you to try some of our signature dishes.
See for yourself what an amazing variety of healthy, delicious dishes are available to you by trying out our Mediterranean cuisine. We cook with the freshest and highest quality ingredients, so you know that your food is as healthy as it can be.
If you decided this New Year that your resolution would be to lose weight, eat healthier, or focus on another health condition, trying out the Mediterranean diet may well be the right way to start off your New Year.
Instead of starving your way to a ‘better you’ only to give up in a month, you can change your life through delicious food that makes you excited to come back for more. The easiest resolutions to keep are the ones that make you happy to do them, and eating tasty meals like the kind we serve is a great way to start.
https://www.cnn.com/2022/01/04/health/mediterranean-diet-2022-best-diet-wellness/
Mediterranean food has long been known as one of the healthiest diets in the world, but a recent study has thrown that into question. The study states that if you eat a Mediterranean diet but don’t choose to make it all organic as well, you may be taking in as many as 3 times the environmental contaminants as from a conventional western diet.
This is a concern for anyone, especially if they’re switching to a Mediterranean diet to benefit their health. We know that the Mediterranean diet carries a lot of benefits, including but not limited to:
• Improved Cardiovascular health
• Reduced risk of Alzheimer’s
• Weight loss
• Longer lifespan
• Cuts risk of Parkinson’s disease in half
• Protects against Type 2 Diabetes
It’s clear from the dozens of high-quality studies done on the Mediterranean diet that it is beneficial to our health. Yet this study is also a concern. It’s not always practical to search for fresh, organic ingredients, and we don’t yet know the drawbacks to environmental contaminants in our food.
No Warnings at this Time
The study conducted on the Mediterranean diet does illustrate some concerns—mainly with conventional farming and the problems any fresh vegetable grown conventionally can have. However, the study was very small, and didn’t provide any farther information such as what the health implications may be.
At this time, the study was not sufficient to cause scientists to warn against the Mediterranean diet, even if it was not grown organically.
Any vegetable is better than no vegetable
The simple truth of the matter is that the average American doesn’t get enough vegetables. Any vegetable at all is better than no vegetable. If you’re at the beginning of your health journey, don’t let the higher price of organic food stop you.
In the study, using organic vegetables reduced contaminants in the participant’s urine by 90%, but it’s not always cost effective to live on organic food. If you’re already on a Mediterranean style diet and are looking to improve your health even more, switching to organic food could be the next step.
If you’re just beginning your journey however, don’t let conventional vegetables stop you from getting the potential health benefits of a Mediterranean diet. It’s clear from the dozens of studies out there showing how much it can change your health that even conventional vegetables are beneficial, but also that there is always room to improve.
If you’re not sure that you’ll like the Mediterranean diet, we invite you to come to our resteraunt and try it for yourself. We offer free range chicken and always fresh, premium ingredients. You’ll get a chance to sample the cuisine style, and know that you are one step closer to a longer, healthier life with each delicious bite.
The Mediterranean diet has been the number one diet as voted by doctors, nutritionists, and other experts around the world for a good reason. A healthy diet consisting of vegetables, healthy fats, lean meats, and nuts are one of the best things you can do for your body.
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