Why the Mediterranean Diet Is Rated Best for Health

(CNN) — The gold medals pile up. For the sixth year in a row, the Mediterranean-style diet has taken the title of best overall diet, according to his 2023 assessment released Tuesday by U.S. News & World Report. Diet from the sunny Mediterranean also ranked first in the Best Diets for Healthy Eating and Best Plant-Based Diets categories.

Two new categories added in 2023 link the Mediterranean to lower cholesterol TLC (therapeutic lifestyle change)) and the flexitarian diet are the best family-friendly diets, DASH (diet therapy to stop high blood pressure)) for the best bone and joint health diet.

“We’re always looking for health conditions that we can address, but often we don’t have enough scientific data to look at diet X and condition X,” says Gretel, health editor-in-chief at US News & World Report. Schueller says Annual diet ranking.

“But bone and joint health is an area in which there is a considerable amount of scientific literature,” Schueller said. “We also recognize that the population is aging, so focusing on diets that improve the quality of life of older people is an important factor.”

Also new this year is that only 24 diets were ranked, rather than about 40 diets analyzed over the past few years. Five of his diets from the original list—vegetarian, vegan, Nordic, traditional Asian, and glycemic index—were integrated by the judges into Mediterranean and other diets due to their underlying plant-based principles. rice field.

“The key message here is the realization that the Mediterranean diet is not really just food around the Mediterranean,” said Schuler. It can be applied to any dish.”

That approach is reflected in two new meals. the key to When Pretty Kin — Schuler said it was added to the 2023 review. (Yes, Keyto with a Y.)

“We recognize that more and more people are following, or at least trying to do, a plant-forward or plant-based diet.” should be a plan.

“Pritikin’s diet is fairly flexible, with an emphasis on eating low-fat, high-fiber whole foods,” she added. But I think this is great.”

What is a Mediterranean-style diet?

Many studies have found that the Mediterranean diet can reduce the risk of diabetes, high cholesterol, dementia, memory loss, depression, and breast cancer. It’s also associated with stronger bones, a healthier heart, and a longer lifespan.

The diet features simple plant-based fare, with the majority of each meal focusing on fruits and vegetables, whole grains, beans and seeds, with some nuts and extra virgin olive oil. Fats other than olive oil, such as butter, are rarely, if ever, consumed, and sugar and refined foods are reserved for special occasions.

Red meat is used sparingly and usually only for flavoring dishes. Eating healthy, fatty fish rich in omega-3 fatty acids is encouraged, but eggs, dairy products and poultry are eaten in much smaller amounts than in the traditional Western diet.

Social interaction during meals and exercise is a fundamental cornerstone of a Mediterranean-style diet. Lifestyle changes that are part of your diet include eating with friends and family, socializing while you eat, eating your favorite foods carefully, and mindful movement and exercise.

2nd place and bottom

Just like in 2022, DASH and the Flexitarian diet came in second for best overall diet. Similar to Mediterranean-style diets, these diets reduce or eliminate processed foods and stress over packing your plates with fruits, vegetables, beans, lentils, whole grains, nuts and seeds.

While the DASH diet focuses on limiting salt intake in an effort to lower blood pressure, the flexitarian diet lives up to its name by allowing you to enjoy occasional meat and poultry.

A panel of 33 experts examined the top diets and ranked them in several categories. Was it evidence-based? You need food that is available in any supermarket. How easy was the meal preparation and did you use additional vitamins and supplements?

“We were more focused on quality than quantity,” says Schueller. “Our reviewers felt there were some wacky diets not worth your time, such as the Dukan diet, which we no longer rank.”

The Worst Diet award went to Raw Food Diet of the Year. This is due, at least in part, to a lack of nutritional integrity, raising safety concerns among judges. Or you can eat only unprocessed foods that have not been exposed to pesticides or herbicides, so reviews consider this diet almost impossible to follow.

The popular keto diet, along with the modified keto diet, ranked 20th out of 24 diets, followed by Atkins, SlimFast and Optavia. It ranks lower because it focuses on eating protein or high-fat foods, is very restrictive and difficult to follow, and eliminates entire food groups.

Despite keto’s low overall rating, reviewers ranked the keto diet as the number one best short-term weight loss diet, Schuler said, and these diets are not considered a healthy lifestyle. He quickly added that he did not.

“These are meals for people who have a wedding or other event they want to go to in the next few months,” she said. Do you? Probably not.”

more winners

In the best (long-term) weight loss diet category, WW (previously called Weight Watchers) came in first, followed by DASH and TLC in second. The program took top honors, followed by NOOM and Jenny Craig.

Flexitarian and TLC shared gold in the easiest diet category, with Mediterranean and DASH diets coming in third.

The DASH diet won top honors as the best diet for heart health and diabetes, followed by the Mediterranean, Flexitarian and Ornish diets. It was invented in 1977 by Dr. Dean Ornish, founder of the Institute of Medicine.

The Ornish diet combines stress management techniques, exercise, social support and smoking cessation and is, according to Ornish, the only program scientifically proven to reverse heart disease without drugs or surgery. is.

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