The Mediterranean Diet

The Mediterranean Diet and its Many Healthy Aspects

Mediterranean Diet in Italy

The Mediterranean Diet and Health

According to the American Heart Association, a Mediterranean diet is characterized by:

• Fruit
• Vegetables
• Nuts and seeds
• Olive oil
• Small amounts of dairy
• Small amounts of fish and poultry
• Very small amounts of red meat and eggs
• Moderate amounts of wine

Always according to the American Heart Association, a Mediterranean diet may be high in fats.

Truth is, however, that the fats abounding in Mediterranean cuisine are monounsaturated and therefore healthy. If it is true that the Mediterraneans have become increasingly obese, it is also true that the real culprit is not the Mediterranean diet itself, but rather the increase in consumption of processed foods and sugars, a widespread phenomenon all around the world.

The Mayo Clinic seems to be better informed about it, and presents a typical Mediterranean diet as the perfect choice to keep our heart healthy.

That the Mediterraneans eat well, or at least better than others, is evident from the data collected by  FAO, the Food and Agriculture Organization. According to it, Italians consume 140 kg of fruit and 180 kg of vegetable per capita a year. Americans, on the other hand, only consume 113 kg of fruit and 129 kg of vegetables, although the worst are the Brits with only 91 kg of fruit and 89 of vegetables consumed per capita in 12 months.

When people talk to me about going to an Italian restaurant, they mention pizza or pasta (by the way, Alfredo sauce is unknown in Italy).

Only high end Italian restaurants in the United States offer a variety of vegetables. It is even rarer to find fruit being served as dessert.

Salad is often served with pre-packed dressings that Euro-Italians have never seen, and that cannot compare in quality and taste to a dash of fresh olive oil and mild vinegar. Some of these dressings are so high in fat that they eliminate the benefits of eating salads.

Italian-American cooking lacks the essentials of a good, old fashioned Mediterranean diet. Salads and vegetables are overwhelmed with sauces and cheese. And even Italian classics like eggplant parmigiana, are heavier in America, where the eggplant is usually deep fried and smothered with fatty cheese. Even pizza is cooked differently in the United States.

Mediterranean (Italian) and American Recipes: how do They Compare?

It is undeniable: the way Italian-Mediterranean cuisine is interpreted in the US differs greatly from its original, European counterpart. One of the best ways to really understand how much is to look at recipes. Check out what makes a typically American pasta sauce:

• 3 TBSP of butter
• 8 fluid ounces of heavy whipping cream
• Salt to taste
• 1 pinch of ground nutmeg
• 1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese
• 1/4 cup grated Romano cheese
• 1 egg yolk
• 2 tablespoons grated Parmesan cheese

This is a sauce heavy in fats, which makes it also hard digest.

On the other hand, an Italian, everyday pasta sauce would be prepared with ingredients like these:

• fresh tomatoes
• fresh garlic
• fresh basil
• extra virgin olive oil
• grated real parmesan

It’s easy to see how light this sauce is: made up with fresh ingredients, the almost totality of its fat content is that of the extra virgin olive oil. Parmesan is a very healthy type of cheese, rich in iron and other minerals and, unless you cover your pasta with it, it’ll only add healthy proteins and minerals to your meal.

Pizza and pasta do not have to be cooked like a Kamikaze’s last meal! Both can be quite healthy and any significant grease or fat can be avoided, if they are cooked properly.

Here is a simple recipe to make a perfect (and healthy) Italian tomato sauce

What Should We Eat if we Decide to Follow a Mediterranean Diet at Home? 

If you want to try to follow a real Mediterranean diet, you could try to follow the suggestions given by Andrea Ghiselli and Lavinia Guffanti in La dieta Mediterranea, The Mediterran Diet:

• A brioche or croissant for breakfast – 1 slice of bread, Fette Biscottate, or cereals
• A portion of fruit twice a day
• A portion of vegetables twice a day
• A portion of fish two or three times a week
• Do not consume more than four eggs a week
• Do not eat fast food
• Eat legumes more than once a week
• Eat pasta or rice three to five times a week
• Use olive oil as dressing
• Do not consume much alcohol
• Eat less than 100g of meat a day.

What does it Take to Create an Authentic Mediterranean Diet in the USA?

Try eating pasta with a simple sauce made with fresh tomatoes, or tomatoes and clams (pasta alle vongole) or ragù sauce (ragù in Italy is not a brand, but a type of sauce made with meat and tomatoes). Avoid Alfredo sauce, and other cream and butter based sauces.

In Italy, cream-based pasta sauces have been out of style since the 1980s. Avoid bread sticks that come with American Pizza, fresh bread is healthier.

An Italian Breakfast

An Italian breakfast is frugal: it usually consists of cappuccino or coffee and milk, with a cornetto (a type of croissant). This is often consumed on the go, at the café, just before getting to work. When having breakfast at home, Italians have coffee and milk and maybe one or two light cookies, or one or two slices of bread with jam and maybe some fresh fruit.

Freshly squeezed orange juice is becoming more popular.

I have heard in the US that this type of breakfast is unhealthy, and that you should eat a decent sized energy breakfast to start out your day. This may have been true seventy years ago, when people would go work in the fields and a nutritious breakfast was vital. At that time, breakfast was a more conspicuous affair in Italy, too.

Today, if you sit down in an office for eight hours straight you may think twice about letting all the fat from a heavy breakfast of egg and bacon stick around your hips.

In the USA I have seen people eating eggs and steak for breakfast. A high fat breakfast is different from a high energy breakfast. Fat makes your body slow down, and takes longer to digest. Grains give high energy without all the excess fat. Each of us use a certain quantity of calories to stay alive, to regulate body temperature etc. If we take in more calories than we burn, then we get fat.

Cereal, toast and fruit are fine for breakfast, so the Italian breakfast is not so far off.

Snacks

In Italy, snacks are usually a very light affair: coffee, cappuccino, maybe a cornetto, tramezzino or a pizzetta. Fresh fruit and yogurt are also very popular options.

Lunch

Lunch in Italy usually consist of a single dish, either pasta or meat and vegetables, plus some fruit and the ubiquituous coffee. For lunch, my mother either cooks pasta with tomato sauce or makes a salad. Sometimes she bakes fish in the oven with potatoes. She might make a light meat dish with a tossed salad or vegetables. All followed by fruit for dessert.

Dinner

In a modern working family, dinnertime has become the main meal of the day. Not eating too late, giving time to digest before going to bed is important. I usually cook a one-course dinner with salad or vegetables. Sometimes I make “pasta e fagioli” (pasta with navy beans) or a soup with fish and vegetables. During the weekend, I might have friends over and cook a two course meal like pasta or rice with meat or fish and salad or vegetables and fruit.

Drinks

According to a 2002 FAO study, “the high and increasing consumption of sugars and sweetened drinks by children in many countries is of alarming concern.” It has been estimated that a glass of sugar-sweetened drink per day increases the risk of becoming obese by 60%. Most of the evidence relates to carbonated drinks, but many fruit drinks and cordials are equally sugary, and may promote weight gain if consumed in large quantities. The evidence against high intake of sweetened drinks in promoting weight gain is considered moderately strong. Italians consume a limited amount of carbonated beverages and prefer mineral water to accompany their meals.

By Paolo Nascimbeni, edited and updated by Francesca Bezzone

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