Wine & Health: The Mediterranean Diet

For the last ten or more years, there’s been quite a lot of talk about the benefits of a Mediterranean Diet. But just what does such a diet entail? Sonia Michaels and Delicious Italy explain why this diet is good for you, and how to get started!

The web site of the American Heart Association claims that "Cardiovascular disease claims one life every 33 seconds." Almost all of us know someone who has had a heart attack--sadly, most of us know someone who has died from one. Fortunately, the Mediterranean Diet is one of the world's healthiest ways of eating--but what exactly IS this way of eating, and how can a diet that includes so much oil and fat, and even moderate amounts of alcohol, actually be good for our cardiac health?

The true Mediterranean diet is not quite the same as the "French Paradox" that has been so much in the news for the past few years. The term "French Paradox" refers to the relationship between wine (especially red wine) and cardiac health, whereas the phrase "Mediterranean Diet" refers to a more holistic approach to eating--one which includes wine, but also includes healthy fats, whole foods, and less red meat than the average North American diet contains.

British cardiologist Laura Corr claims that "the low-fat/low cholesterol diet is ineffective." Her 1997 study clarifies the relationship between diet and cardiac health, and refers to the Lyon trial (1994), which discovered that subjects eating a Mediterranean style diet had "little change in cholesterol or body weight, but the trial was stopped early following a 70% reduction in myocardial infarction, coronary mortality and total mortality after 2 years." The diet used in this trial contained "a modest reduction in total and saturated fat, a decrease in polyunsaturated fat and an increase in omega-3 fatty acids from vegetables and fish."

The Mediterranean approach to food is practically the polar opposite of the North American approach. One of the secrets of the Mediterranean diet seems to be moderation and balance--moderate quantities of red meat and wine, frequent servings of fish and seafood in many different forms, a wide variety of vegetables, grains and legumes, and lots of really good olive oil. Mediterranean desserts tend to be small (much smaller than North American portions), but are often quite rich. Throughout most of the region, the main meal of the day is usually lunch; this meal is made up of a number of different courses (only one or two of which will contain red meat), and ideally takes a couple of hours to eat.

The most important difference between the Mediterranean and North American approaches to food, though, seems to involve portion sizes and the relative proportions of food. In his 1995 article in Wine Spectator magazine, Harvey Steiman writes "Visualize two roast beef sandwiches. The one on the left is from an American delicatessen, mostly meat between two thin slices of rye bread. The one on the right is from an Italian caffè, a thin slice of meat and a slice of tomato wedged in the middle of a thick roll. Picture a glass of wine next to the Italian sandwich, and you have the Mediterranean diet in a nutshell. The key is to eat familiar foods but rearrange the proportions. And oh, by the way, have some wine." Essentially, the same ingredients might be combined very differently in Athens, Georgia than they would be in Athens, Greece.

The place of wine in the Mediterranean Diet is problematic, especially for women, since even moderate alcohol intake may increase the risk of breast cancer. However, in view of the fact that cardiovascular disease is the leading cause of death in American women, and that "Currently, it is estimated that one in two women will eventually die of heart disease or stroke, compared with one in 27 who will eventually die of breast cancer" (American Heart Association), many women still choose to add a little wine to their diets in the hopes that it may help to protect them from heart disease.

One of the greatest difficulties for North Americans, of course, may be figuring out how to incorporate the Mediterranean diet into family lives that are overwhelmed by fast food, drive-through dining, and super-huge-sized versions of just about everything. Juvenile obesity is on the rise in North America--kids who lead sedentary lives and eat too much junk food are setting themselves up to get heart disease by the time they hit their late 20's. Of course, we can't just turn off the dietary influence of our environment and pretend we live on a secluded Greek Island or in an Umbrian hill town; what we can do, though, is try to incorporate some Mediterranean essentials into our daily lives.

Some ways to start:

So, pour yourself a glass of wine, sit down with a good Mediterranean cookbook, and remember that you can eat wonderful food without feeling guilty! Enjoy.

Deliciousitaly.com provides bite sized portions of information for the independent visitor to Italy who knows how to eat and travel well. Weekly recipes, regional events, travel help and much much more directly from Italy.

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