The Mediterranean Diet has long ranked as one of the top diets recommended by doctors and nutritionists. It’s often ranked this way not only because it’s easy to stick to, but also because of how healthy most of the ingredients are.
In particular, two ingredients show up over and over again in Mediterranean recipes. Olive oil and lemons are used liberally in Mediterranean cuisine, and both of them pack a huge nutrition boost. Here’s why.
Fats were once considered the enemy of dieters everywhere. The idea was that fats made you fat, since they have so many calories. The truth, it turns out, is a bit more complicated. Some fats really are bad for you, like the highly processed hydrogenated oils.
Fat is a macronutrient however, and necessary for your survival. It’s not a matter of cutting fats out of your diet completely, it’s about choosing healthy ones.
Olive oil is just about the healthiest fat you can dream up. It’s an unsaturated fat that is good for your heart, brain, and vascular system. Olive oil is what they call a ‘good fat,’ since it helps your body instead of hindering its function.
Lemons are another amazing super food. While you may be aware that it is packed with Vitamin C, but what you may not know is that Vitamin C is good for more than just avoiding scurvy. It’s also essential for heart health, improves immune function, and reduces your risk of stroke.
Another great benefit of Lemons are the unique aspects of citrus fiber. Eating just 24 grams of citrus fiber a month has been shown to reduce blood cholesterol levels. Two other parts of lemon, hesperidin and diosmin, also help reduce cholesterol in their own right.
If all that wasn’t enough to sell you on the health aspects of lemons, they’re also great for those hoping to avoid packing on the pounds. Lemon extracts have been found to help reduce weight gain, even if you end up eating more than usual.
They may also help in actual weight loss, but scientists have not finished sorting out whether this is true or not. As more research comes out, we’ll likely know more about how much lemons can contribute to weight loss.
Both olive oil and lemons have wonderful benefits to the body. They also taste good, especially in the rich flavor combinations of the Mediterranean diet. A healthy diet is one that has a lot of variety. Dieticians recommend eating the rainbow, because eating lots of rich and colorful food means a variety of nutrients as well.
Lemons are one of the few yellow foods out there, and also come with their own unique nutrients your body benefits from. While olive oil is a more common green, it nonetheless has some powerful nutritional benefits that your body needs.
The Mediterranean diet has both of these in generous amounts, making it a great starting point for healthy eating.
This year, hundreds of people voted on the best Mediterranean restaurant on Trip Advisor. Votes reviewed 4 different aspects of a restaurant, ranging from the ambiance of the restaurant itself to the food and service.
We are proud to announce that when people think of good Mediterranean food in the San Diego area, they think of Aladdin Mediterranean Restaurant.
There are thousands of different restaurants in the San Diego area, and dozens of Mediterranean restaurants. The fact that customers think we’re the best is a wonderful tribute to the rich flavor and attentive service you will receive at Aladdin.
Not only did Aladdin receive in excellent review for being the best Mediterranean restaurant in the area, it also ranks in the top 10% out of all restaurants in the area. This is a huge compliment to the service, quality ingredients, and delicious authentic food.
What makes Aladdin so great?
Hundreds of people voted for Aladdin because of our care and attention to high quality food. We use only the freshest ingredients to create our signature dishes. We take the time to search out only the best and freshest ingredients to make our food.
Our dishes are also perfect for a broad range of tastes, including vegetarians, vegans, and Halal needs. Whatever your needs may be in order to enjoy a great meal, our attentive staff will be there to make sure you can enjoy a healthy meal.
It’s not always easy to find a place that cares about your meal choices, or that makes healthy food also taste delicious. If you’re hoping to start a new path in life and want to try healthy food that won’t leave you wishing you were eating something else, Aladdin is the perfect place to start.
What our customers have to say
Take a look at the comments our wonderful customers left behind and it is easy to see how we got to the number one spot. Customers praise Aladdin for being attentive to those with allergies and their needs, as well as providing fresh, delicious, and authentic service.
We care deeply about providing the best Mediterranean food in San Diego, and that means delivering the best experience from the moment you step through the doors.
Take a look at the comments on Trip Advisor and you’ll see an overwhelming number of happy customers who were pleasantly surprised by our fresh food, delicious taste, and caring staff.
Try it yourself
If you’d like to see what the restaurant voted as the #1 Mediterranean restaurant in San Diego looks like, come and try our food for yourself. We will be happy to take care of you, whether you have special dietary requirements or simply want to enjoy a wonderful and authentic meal in peace.
We look forward to serving you and giving you a reason to be yet another happy customer falling in love with our Mediterranean food. Bring your family and sit down to a beautiful meal.
Firefighters save lives every single day. They charge into burning buildings, help control wildfires, often without a second thought to their lives. They’re also one of the careers at highest risk for chronic diseases, including heart disease and cancer.
Much of this comes from the line of work—firefighters are exposed to smoke and dangerous chemicals almost every day. Firefighters have as much as a 9% increase in risk of cancer, and also increased risk of lung problems due to the smoke.
Even if firefighters work hard to maintain their health, stay fit, and clean their equipment regularly, there’s still a risk that they could be harmed by their job.
Mediterranean Diets Could Help
A healthy diet is one important way that firefighters can help keep themselves in top shape. Eating the right foods can help reduce your risk of cancer and other chronic conditions, and help improve lifespan. With a job as important as firefighter, it makes sense that their diet should be as healthy as possible.
The problem is adherence. It’s easy to recommend a diet to a group of people, it’s quite another to get them to actually do it. Diets often fail because the person undergoing the diet quickly gives up. In medical speak, “Adherence” to the plan is the most difficult part, with a person being adherent if they follow the plan 80% of the time.
The Mediterranean diet has long been known as one of the healthiest diets out there. It could potentially help balance many of the chronic conditions that befall firefighters—if they adhere to the diet.
Study shows adherence is high for firefighters
A study focused on the Indianapolis Fire Department found that compared to a control group, firefighters who were given the Mediterranean diet were more likely to stick to the plan compared to people in the control group.
Americans can be extremely difficult to change the eating habits of, so this study is extremely welcome. The hope is that by recommending a diet that firefighters are more likely to stick to, more firefighters can be kept healthy for longer.
What this means
If you are a firefighter, or just a person looking to be your healthiest, diet can be one of the hardest things to change. The Mediterranean diet is easy to adapt to and provides a rich variety of different flavors.
Many diets fail because the diet is too restrictive. With the many options and high adaptability of the Mediterranean diet, there are so many choices you never feel restricted.
With so much freedom in a very healthy diet, and huge health benefits that could potentially save our firefighter’s lives, encouraging them to switch to the Mediterranean diet is one of the best things we can do.
If you’re one of the brave firefighters defending our front lives, or simply want to be healthier, stop on by Aladdins to give real, authentic Mediterranean food a try. It could be the first step toward a healthier and happier you.
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/24570328/