Origins Of The Mediterranean Diet

Introduction

Looking to change things up on your plate? With our modern age diets, we all go
through this phase of exploring out of our current not-so-healthy pastures and
seeking out healthier ones.

Everyone has his or her reasons for shifting to the health bandwagon—from
weight issues to health problems. And, some of us just want to feel better and live
a happier, fuller life. That said, your reasons for wanting to change your diet are
secondary concerns. What matters most is understanding that this isn‘t a nag for
change, but a sign your current dietary lifestyle needs changing. After all, what
you put on your plate matters a lot.

If you‘re like most Americans, you‘ve probably seen your fair share of formidable
plates. Breakfast starts with bowls of sugary cereals, doughnuts or stacked up
pancakes covered with a healthy dose of maple-flavored syrup. By the time you‘re
done with breakfast, you‘ve already prepped your body with food to reduce your
daily health levels. As the saying goes: You can‘t outrun a bad habit.

There‘s a silver lining in all this, however. You don‘t need to outrun a bad habit
when you can defeat it. Once you stop feeling the need to run, you‘re more likely
to enjoy the current life you have. And that‘s exactly where the Mediterranean
diet comes in.

This revolutionary diet has gained an increasing popularity within the health-
sphere for a variety of reasons. We‘re going to dive into each and every reason so
that you will understand the benefits this has to offer you. But, before we jump
head first; we‘re going to look at the roots of the Mediterranean diet in Chapter 1.

After that, we‘ll dip our toes in and check out the kinds of foods this diet
promotes. Getting the basics down is quite important to really understand where
all the benefits of this diet lie. After we‘re done with all the essential talk, we‘ll
look at the different advantages this diet has to offer in Chapter 3. Lastly, Chapter
4 and 5 will explore how you can get started on the Mediterranean diet and how
you can maintain it for healthy living.

Origins Of The Mediterranean Diet

To really change the way you eat, you should understand what healthy eating
entails. So let‘s make a few clarifications here. The Mediterranean diet is more
than just a simple restrictive course meal you follow for a period of time. It‘s not a
quick measure, but a lasting one.

How do we know?

Because while we refer to it as revolutionary, it‘s not something new to the world.

It‘s been around for decades within the area it‘s named after, The Mediterranean.

So you‘re not adopting a low result diet to which you‘re a guinea pig. But a
lifestyle which many before you and many currently living in the world with you
are taking advantage of as of this moment.

The Mediterranean Diet is, however, revolutionary for the western world. We‘ve
grown accustomed to the kinds of foods sold to us through corporations which
eye our pockets more than our waists. With the Mediterranean diet, you‘ll be able
to break out of the bad cycle you‘ve created and take on life with all the zeal and
energy you‘re meant to have.

That said, changing your lifestyle is a commitment. It‘s understandable if you
have questions regarding whether this diet is for you. In reality, only you can
answer that by exploring what this diet has to offer you. This book will provide
you with all of that information. The very first concern individuals adopting an
older lifestyle have: Will this diet suit me?

For that, we need to take a trip down memory lane and find our way back to
present times.

History of the Mediterranean Diet

As we‘ve previously mentioned, this diet is named after its area of origin. While
this entire region includes Spain, Morocco, Monaco, Turkey, Libya and the like;
the Mediterranean diet finds its roots in Spain, Greece and Southern Italy in
particular. These nations, their culture, history, and food had the biggest
influence in developing this healthy, enriching diet.

During the Prehistoric Age, these countries survived through hunting and
farming animals. This form of sustenance isn‘t the most efficient, and the entire
region shifted to agricultural farming during the Bronze Age. While animals were
still consumed, the poor economies of this region meant locals had to survive on
fruits they labored themselves. Within agriculture‘s ease, farming became a
primary source of food for this region throughout history and even today.

In fact, cities were built keeping in mind this agricultural need, and you‘ll see this
reflected in their architecture as well. A thousand years ago, locals had piled
strong lava stones to construct walls which curved their islands. With the intent
to protect their soil from erosion and help it maintain all the nourishment it had,
terraced hills were created along slopes. Given how these systems still exist today,
you can see the dedication put into their lifestyle.

But none of this arose in isolation. Countries and cities within the Mediterranean
zone have diverse food palettes in the reflection of their diverse history. This
cuisine, in particular, takes inspiration from every ethnic culture from Arabian to
Italian; and builds into its own entity. These regions were a crossroads for many
civilizations and cultures, all of which have an influence on their culture today
and all the dishes these areas produced.

You‘d have settlers from North Africa springing these areas to life as early as
3000 BC. A range of civilizations and religious cultures fluttering through and
leaving all their uniqueness as they stayed or left. For example, Southern Italy did
not grow grapes and citrus trees. With their land and agricultural innovations, it
wasn‘t possible to naturally grow these plants. That changed when Muslim
farmers came to the land around 860 AD and developed techniques which
allowed their growth and nourishment.

These areas have changed hands so many times, getting anything less than a
variety of tastes would leave anyone in awe. So you have a lifestyle diet
constructed through careful and natural agricultural techniques which acted as
sustenance to many different cultures. But that‘s not why it‘s sustainable for us in
the modern day as well. Let‘s explore a bit more.

Geography and the Mediterranean Diet

We‘re often told we‘ve developed certain food habits through evolution and
changing it could be pretty harmful. That is, adopting certain diets from other
countries can be damaging. But if the Mediterranean‘s history doesn‘t prove
otherwise, just gloss over the region‘s geography.

Most Mediterranean areas where this diet originates from weren‘t high on arable
land and were prone to extreme climates—often with erratic rainfall. Couple that
with winds and you have an environment which does not support agriculture
naturally.

This diet was, in fact, a result of a man-made change. As we‘ve previously stated,
Muslim farmers brought with them a fair share of innovation which helped this
region diverse their land. But perhaps the biggest indicator itself is found in their
current topography.

In other to adapt their land for certain agricultural uses, the people of these
regions carved their land to support the growth of such crops. Their hills were
transformed into terraces which provide a unique ecosystem to this region.

Tourists marvel at their hills, yet few know how these were once man-made
constructions. Many cities used lava stones to form walls around their islands to
facilitate soil protection from erosion. Not to mention, keep the area as moisture
and nutrition filled as possible. That is how they were able to grow grapevines
and caper plants.

So there were a lot of things unnatural to the land which helped the people there
flourish naturally. The region‘s climate, however, is reflective of more Western
nations today. We‘re good on this front as well.

Lifestyle of Mediterranean People

To cover all our tracks, we‘ll glean over general lifestyle aspects mostly found in
this region. As mentioned, the region is filled with diversity and various cultures,
but they do typically have a few lifestyle characteristics in common. For one, the
people have a tradition of working hard and are thus able to continue their efforts
of maintaining a healthy lifestyle.

A very common feature of the Mediterranean lifestyle is their family
togetherness. Meals are often eaten with others which have hidden health
benefits. For one, you can eat as much or as little as you like. Most American
meals have separate portions for all. Meaning: You finish what you‘ve taken out
or else it‘s going to look bad. With a more family -sized serving, you‘re not
restricting or over-compensating for what‘s on your plate and focusing on just as
much as you‘d like to eat.

Disease and obesity are also considered to be low in this region. According to
OECD, only 1 in 10 people is considered obese within Italy. That number is
strikingly low when compared to more western nations. Somewhat a reflection of
their light, but nutrition filled meals, and less stressful lives are some of the
explanations.

The facts are simple. It does not matter which angle you look at it from; a
Mediterranean diet is perfectly adaptable for most individuals. It has been
around for quite some time. And thus, tried and tested for centuries. You‘re not
risking your health, just improving it. In fact, you don‘t even need to hunt out
special groceries which are essential to your core diet. Given its diverse nature,
the Mediterranean diet requires nothing special which ranks up its cost and is
pretty affordable—especially given its long-term health benefits.

If all your concerns are tackled, the next chapter contains all the information you
need to understand what this diet entails.