Unlock Incredible Health Benefits with an Energy-Reduced Mediterranean Diet!

The Mediterranean diet, characterized by a high consumption of fruits, vegetables, whole grains, legumes, nuts, and olive oil, coupled with limited intake of meat, sugary drinks, and added sugars, has long been recognized for its health benefits. Emerging research highlights the potential of an energy-reduced Mediterranean diet, combined with physical activity and professional support, to significantly reduce the risk of type 2 diabetes and improve body composition.

Mediterranean Diet: An Overview

The Mediterranean Diet emphasizes plant-based foods and healthy fats, focusing on overall eating patterns. It involves consuming lots of vegetables, fruit, beans, lentils, and nuts, a good amount of whole grains, plenty of extra virgin olive oil (EVOO) as a source of healthy fat, a good amount of fish, especially fish rich in omega-3 fatty acids, a moderate amount of natural cheese and yogurt, little or no red meat, choosing poultry, fish or beans instead of red meat, little or no sweets, sugary drinks or butter, and a moderate amount of wine with meals.

Researchers have linked these eating patterns with a reduced risk of coronary artery disease (CAD). Healthcare providers recommend this eating plan if you have risk factors for heart disease or to support other aspects of your health.

Benefits of the Mediterranean Diet

The Mediterranean Diet has many benefits, including lowering your risk of cardiovascular disease, supporting a healthy body weight, supporting healthy blood sugar levels, blood pressure and cholesterol, lowering your risk of metabolic syndrome, supporting a healthy balance of gut microbiota in your digestive system, lowering your risk for certain types of cancer, slowing the decline of brain function as you age and helping you live longer.

The Mediterranean Diet has these benefits because it limits saturated fat and trans fat, encourages healthy unsaturated fats, including omega-3 fatty acids, limits sodium, limits refined carbohydrates, including sugar, and favors foods high in fiber and antioxidants.

Read also: Energy Consumption and Diets

Energy-Reduced Mediterranean Diet and Diabetes Prevention

A study co-authored by researchers at Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health found that a Mediterranean-style diet, in combination with reduced caloric intake, moderate physical activity, and professional support for weight loss, may cut the risk of type 2 diabetes (T2D) by 31%. The researchers split 4,746 PREDIMED-Plus participants into an intervention group and a control group and followed their health outcomes for six years. The intervention group adhered to a Mediterranean diet; reduced their caloric intake by about 600 calories per day; engaged in moderate physical activity, such as brisk walking and strength and balance exercises; and received professional support for weight loss control. The control group adhered to a Mediterranean diet without calorie restriction, exercise guidance, or professional support. It was found that those in the intervention group had a 31% lower risk of developing T2D compared to those in the control group.

According to Jordi Salas-Salvadó, MD, PhD, lifestyle intervention using an energy-reduced Mediterranean diet could be an important approach to reduce the incidence of diabetes. The Mediterranean diet, with its focus on fruits, vegetables, whole cereals, legumes, nuts, and extra-virgin olive oil and limiting meat, sugar-sweetened beverages, added sugars, and cream, is palatable and culturally acceptable in many countries.

Impact on Body Composition

An interim analysis of a randomized clinical trial including 1521 individuals found that a 3-year intervention based on an energy-reduced Mediterranean diet and physical activity promotion, compared with advice to follow an ad libitum Mediterranean diet, reduced the total and visceral fat and attenuated the loss of lean mass in older adults with overweight or obesity and metabolic syndrome. Participants in the intervention arm showed greater reductions in the percentage of total fat and visceral fat storage and greater increases in the percentage of total lean mass. The intervention group was more likely to show improvements of 5% or more in baseline body components.

These findings suggest a weight-loss lifestyle intervention based on an energy-reduced MedDiet and physical activity significantly reduced total and visceral fat and attenuated age-related losses of lean mass in older adults with overweight or obesity and metabolic syndrome. Specific body composition components seem to be the key in the development of obesity-associated chronic diseases.

Practical Implementation

To create a Mediterranean Diet meal plan, it’s important to consult with a primary care physician (PCP) or dietitian before making drastic changes to your diet or trying any new eating plan. They’ll make sure your intended plan is best for you based on your individual needs.

Read also: Boosting Vegan Energy Levels

Mediterranean Diet food list

The Mediterranean Diet encourages you to eat plenty of some foods (like whole grains and vegetables) while limiting others. Here are some examples of foods to eat often with the Mediterranean Diet: vegetables, fruit, beans, lentils, nuts, whole grains, extra virgin olive oil (EVOO) and fish.

Mediterranean Diet serving goals and sizes

It’s always best to talk to a dietitian to get advice tailored to your needs as you get started. Here is some general guidance on serving goals and serving sizes, according to the type of food:

Fresh fruits and vegetables: Fruit: 3 servings per day; Veggies: At least 3 servings per day. Fruit: ½ cup to 1 cup; Veggies: ½ cup cooked or 1 cup raw.
Whole grains and starchy vegetables: 3 to 6 servings per day. ½ cup cooked grains, pasta or cereal; 1 slice of bread; 1 cup dry cereal.
Extra virgin olive oil (EVOO): 1 to 4 servings per day. 1 tablespoon.
Legumes (beans and lentils): 3 servings per week. ½ cup.
Fish: 3 servings per week. 3 to 4 ounces.
Nuts: At least 3 servings per week. ¼ cup nuts or 2 tablespoons nut butter.
Poultry: No more than once daily (fewer may be better). 3 ounces.
Dairy: No more than once daily (fewer may be better). 1 cup milk or yogurt; 1 ½ ounces natural cheese.
Eggs: Up to 1 yolk per day. 1 egg (yolk + white).
Red meat (beef, pork, veal and lamb): None, or no more than 1 serving per week. 3 ounces.
Wine (optional): 1 serving per day (females); 2 servings per day (males). 1 glass (3 ½ ounces).
Baked goods and desserts: Avoid commercially prepared baked goods and desserts; Limit homemade goods to no more than 3 servings per week. Varies by type.

Example Meal Plans

Breakfast: Steel-cut oats with fresh berries and ground flaxseed, whole-grain toast with nut butter and a nutritious smoothie, Greek yogurt topped with fruit and walnuts or egg white omelet with fresh, seasonal veggies.
Lunch: Prepare some lunches the day before so they’re ready to pack or grab from the fridge as needed.
Dinner: For some added nutrients and color, throw together a side salad - like a sesame cucumber salad or a fennel, orange and mint salad. To keep things simple, try drizzling mixed greens with a nutritious Mediterranean dressing.
Snacks: A handful of nuts and seeds (low salt or no salt added), fresh fruit, nonfat Greek yogurt and a small piece of dark chocolate (at least 70% cacao), whole-grain crackers with hummus or raw veggies with a nonfat Greek yogurt dip.

Foods to Limit

The Mediterranean Diet doesn’t set hard and fast rules for what you’re allowed or not allowed. Rather, it encourages you to eat more of certain foods and limit others.

Considerations and Limitations

While the benefits of an energy-reduced Mediterranean diet are evident, it's crucial to consider potential limitations. Sharon Herring, MD, and Gina Tripicchio, PhD, suggest that use of the energy-reduced Mediterranean diet tested in PREDIMED-Plus may not work in all areas of the world. Moreover, prices for extra-virgin olive oil have shot up in recent years in the US “due to a combination of factors including climate change, rising production costs, supply chain disruptions, and now tariffs. Furthermore, the large number of dietician contacts during the study may prove difficult to scale broadly in the United States given challenges with health care access and reimbursement for prevention services.

Salas-Salvadó and colleagues acknowledged several study limitations and noted that in the future it is important to identify subgroups of participants/patients who might benefit most in terms of diabetes prevention and CVD.

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