Friday, June 3, 2011

The Benefits of Eating A Mediterranean Diet

By Sandy Rutherforde


The Mediterranean diet is officially acknowledged as one of the healthiest diets in the world. The emphasis on fruits, vegetables, whole grains, and healthy fats helps make it a perfect diet for both those who want to lose weight and people who wish to live a more healthy lifestyle. On the other hand, there are some disadvantages to this diet program - higher sodium content, high priced foods, and all of that cooking are among the leading problems. Listed here are a few recommendations to help make transitioning to this diet program a little easier.

Combat high prices and consume fresher meals simply by growing many of your own vegetables. Tomatoes, garlic, endive, and quite a few salad greens may be grown in a sunny window sill or hanging planters. Forget about the high-end olive oil and purchase lower cost brands; so long as it is virgin, cold-pressed olive oil, there's no requirement to pay out a lot more for a particular brand.

Though the Mediterranean diet is largely plant based, the meats that are recommended on the plan tend to be expensive. You can reduce your costs by buying farmed fish and bulk-buying meats such as chicken and beef. A beef brisket may be used for salads, stews, soups, pasta dishes, and mini "steaks," but costs much less than steak or beef roasts. Complete chickens can be cut up at home, and are usually more affordable compared to packaged chickens.

Cheeses, sauces, and salty olives can be replaced with lower sodium versions, that will help fight the bloating and water retention many people go through on this plan. If you cannot find a reduced sodium version of a specific food, either do not consume it or leach the salt out of it. Olives may be soaked in water or oil to take out excessive saltiness, and solid cheeses can be soaked in milk or ice water. When soaking cheeses, remove the cheese from your liquid and allow it to re-solidify in the fridge before use.

Whole grain pastas and breads are generally much more costly compared to their processed alternatives. Since they constitute a substantial part of the diet, finding methods to reduce the cost of those foods will save a great deal of money. Many pastas can be prepared at home, by hand; traditional cookbooks will enable you to find recipes and generally offer instructions to roll pasta doughs by hand. If that is too much work, consider bulk food suppliers. A lot of "survival food" stores have bulk packages of whole grain pastas. Breads can be purchased at a salvage bakery or day-old bread shop in most locations.

As a final point, bear in mind the Mediterranean diet is really about making much healthier choices. In the event you cannot afford to eat organic salmon or do not have the time to cook a fresh dish at every single meal, that is fine. Try cooking in batches when you have enough time and employ lower cost ingredients. The strategy is to modify the diet plan to match your lifestyle, not rearrange your whole life around your diet. Follow the simple outline of the strategy, yet make it your own; you'll be able to keep with it longer, save cash, and experience the benefits of much healthier eating without the need of chewing a hole in your bank account.




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