Monday, November 16, 2009

The Mediterranean Diet: Heart Healthy

"That is: no carbs, no fat, no sugar, no meat -- diets are all about forbidding particular foods. The Mediterranean diet is different. Instead of focusing on what you can't have, it focuses on what you can have -- the very best, freshest, healthiest foods." - Jenny Stamos Kovacs WebMD

Key components of the Mediterranean diet include:

Getting plenty of exercise and eating your meals with family and friends
Eating a generous amount of fruits and vegetables
Consuming healthy fats such as olive oil and canola oil
Using herbs and spices instead of salt to flavor foods
Eating small portions of nuts
Drinking red wine, in moderation, for some
Consuming very little red meat
Eating fish or shellfish at least twice a week

The Mediterranean diet has been associated with a lower level of oxidized low-density lipoprotein (LDL) cholesterol — the "bad" cholesterol that's more likely to build up deposits in your arteries. In otherwords, the combination of fresh fruits and vegetables (which are high in antioxidants), good fats (olive oil and nuts), low saturated fat (low in red meat, high in omega-3 loaded fish) in the Mediterranean diet is thought to reduce your risk of heart disease. So Dig in! Here are some good recipes to get your started.....