01/18
These Super Foods are a Prime Part of the Mediterranean Diet
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.
Some Fats are Good Fats
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.
Antioxidants and More
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.
No reason not to dig in
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.