The Mediterranean Diet

There has been a great deal of research about diet, the great majority of which has emphasized the importance of fruits, vegetables and whole foods. The Mediterranean diet, based primarily on fruits, vegetables and fish, can be particularly health protective, helping everything from cardiovascular disease to depression.

Defining the Mediterranean diet can be challenging because there are approximately 16 countries that border the Mediterranean Sea. Diets vary between these countries as well as between regions within each country. Differences in culture, ethnic background, religion, economy and agricultural production result in additional diet variations. Blended together, the common characteristics of the Mediterranean include the following:

• High consumption of fruits, vegetables, bread and other cereals, legumes, nuts and seeds
• Olive oil as an important monounsaturated fat source
• Dairy products, fish, eggs and poultry are consumed in low to moderate amounts, and little red meat is eaten

• Cardiovascular health, obesity, type 2 diabetes, and hypertension
• Cancer
• Alzheimer's disease and dementia
• Depression, addiction, and stress
• Menopause

The Paleolithic, or caveman diet, is a reversion to the foods eaten by humans prior to the advents of civilization, agriculture, and technology. Before those developments, the human diet during the Stone Age is thought to have consisted largely of lean red meat and vegetation. Some dietary experts also think that the original diet of the caveman varied due to the availability of foods. For example, prehistoric man would fast when there was no food, or ate only vegetables when hunting yielded no results.

The Paleolithic diet is high in high-quality protein, fiber, vitamins, minerals, iron, mono-unsaturated fats, omega-3 fats, phytochemicals, and antioxidants. The diet excludes salt, saturated fats, grains, legumes, dairy products, and sugar, and is low in enzyme inhibitors such as protease or amylase inhibitors, exorphins, and glycoalkaloids.

The Paleolithic has produced beneficial health outcomes in controlled medical studies. In clinical research, stroke and ischaemic heart disease were absent in a population living on the island of Kitava, in Papua New Guinea, where the diet is similar to the Paleolithic. Because ischaemic heart disease is closely linked to depression, anxiety, and Alzheimer’s, the Paleolithic diet could theoretically have mental health benefits for some people.

Whole Foods Diet

Whole foods are those that are unprocessed and unrefined before being consumed. They don’t contain added sugar, salt, fat, colorings, or chemicals, and are not preserved by freezing or any other way. Clinical research has shown that diets with whole foods are beneficial to health whereas processed foods are associated with health problems.

Of all foods, fruits and vegetables are the most important because they contain phytochemicals, which help with everything from insomnia to cancer. In addition, fruits and vegetables are also good sources of antioxidants like bioflavonoids, which slow down oxidation, a natural process that leads to cell and tissue damage. Oxidative stress has been implicated as a mechanism underlying many major psychiatric disorders, as the brain has comparatively greater vulnerability to oxidative damage.

While whole foods are the best source of essential nutrients, organic foods have a significantly higher concentration of these nutrients. If you want to get as much nutrition out of your food as possible and reduce the health risks of environmental toxins, consider going organic.

References
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