A diet rich in vegetables, whole grains, and healthy fats is increasingly being recognized as the healthiest for your brain and body.- This diet is known by many different names – from “plant-based” to “Mediterranean” – and can come in a range of variations. But at its core, it is focused on veggies, protein, and healthy fats.
- US News and World Report recently ranked the Mediterranean diet as the best to follow in the year ahead.
In a world dominated by celebrity fad diets, many people don’t believe there’s a single best diet for your health.
But a growing body of research suggests that a meal plan focusing on vegetables, protein, and healthy fats has key benefits for losing weight, keeping your mind sharp, and protecting your heart and brain as you age.
This type of eating regimen is called by many names and comes in different iterations, from “plant-based” to “Mediterranean.” Some people on the diet eat eggs and dairy, meat and fish, or all of the above; others are vegetarian and abstain from meat and animal products altogether.
At its core, however, most of these meal plans are very similar and have two main characteristics: they are rich in vegetables, proteins, and healthy fats and low in heavily processed foods and refined carbohydrates like white bread.
In its annual diet ranking, US News and World Report ranked the Mediterranean diet as the best one to follow in 2019. (The plan was ranked at the top last year, too.)
Evidence supporting that recommendation can be found in the March 2018 issue of the Journal of Gerontology, in which scientists analyzed six recent studies on the Mediterranean diet and found that the eating regimen is closely linked with a variety of beneficial outcomes. Positive impacts include healthy aging, better mobility, a lower risk of chronic diseases like cancer and heart disease, and improved cognitive functioning.
Eating as you live on the coast of Naples or Athens sounds intuitively appealing. Meals could include fresh fish, vegetables drizzled in olive oil, nuts, beans, and whole grains.
Recent research suggests that diets like these, which are also low in processed foods and red meat, are great for your brain and body – both in the near-term and into older age.
To keep your energy levels up and help you feel healthy in the long term, your diet needs to feed more than your stomach. It has to satiate your muscles, which crave protein; your digestive system, which runs best with fiber; and your tissues and bones, which work optimally when they’re getting vitamins from food.
A plant-based diet’s combination of whole grains, fruits, vegetables, proteins, and fats accomplishes that goal. But plant-based diets aren’t just good for the body – they have key benefits for the mind as well.
So if your New Year’s resolution is to eat healthier or lose weight, the Mediterranean plan is worth a try. It may not even feel like you’re dieting at all.
For most, the New Year is for resolutions and new goals. Sometimes, for repeating goals that were set last New Years’ Eve.
Despite the constantly rising interest in health and wellness, we are plagued by an obesity epidemic; 67% of gym members never actually visit their gym, and 80% of us will fail our New Year’s resolutions by February.
Your diet tends to evolve along with the number of candles on your birthday cake. For example, in your hard-training teens and early 20s, you could probably eat at Taco Bell several times a week and still remain fairly lean. That changes during your 30s and 40s. After turning 50, many people start dropping their calories in response to an ever-slower metabolism.
Self-care is not an indulgence. Self-care is a discipline. It requires tough-mindedness, a deep and personal understanding of your priorities, and a respect for both yourself and the people you choose to spend your life with.
Sarcopenia refers to the loss of muscle as we age. The average adult experiences a 5 lb muscle loss, a 5% reduction in metabolic function, and a 15 lb fat gain 10 years. This leads to chronic inflammation, insulin resistance, compromised health and vitality, among other things. It is no wonder we feel less than our best the older we get.
You know that moment. You wake up a few days after a workout and think to yourself, “Ah, now I feel it.” The technical term for this post-workout evidence of hard effort is delayed onset muscle soreness or DOMS.
You can protect yourself from cancer by eating organic, a new study suggests.
Sarcopenia, also known as muscle loss, is a common condition that affects 10% of adults who are over 50 years old.
We use our muscles every day, from our brain to our quads, for the smallest and the biggest tasks. Muscles make up an impressive 45% of our body mass. Did you know that muscle is an endocrine organ and regulates metabolism? Did you know that using your muscles can actually help reduce systemic inflammation?
