The Mediterranean Diet: What Your Heart Desires | Julia Zumpano, RD

The Mediterranean Diet: What Your Heart Desires | Julia Zumpano, RD



For more information about the Mediterranean Diet, please visit https://cle.clinic/3YRr2fm

There's a reason why the Mediterranean Diet serves as the bedrock for heart-healthy living: It works. People who adopt the eating plan tend to live longer and avoid cardiac issues. Listen in as registered dietitian Julia Zumpano explains the foods and general guidelines of the diet.

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[Music] hello and welcome to another Health Essentials podcast I'm John Horton your host why do some people on this planet live longer than others it's a question that brought together researchers from around the world in the 1950s their goal in what became known as the seven country study was to explore possible connections between diet and heart disease that project introduced us all to what's known as the Mediterranean diet today we're going to look at that eating plan which serves as the Bedrock for heart healthy living registered dietitian Julia Zumpano is here to walk us through the foods and the general rules of the Mediterranean diet she's one of the many experts at Cleveland Clinic who pop into our weekly podcast just to help us live a little healthier so with that let's see what your heart desires for your next meal [Music] Julia welcome back to the podcast uh just always a treat to have you on with us thank you so much you know we've talked about this a lot is is just the word diet and people hear it and they think it's some sort of short-term calorie cutting gotta lose some pounds to fit into an outfit thing but it's it's much different than that in in your world right yeah well it certainly can have that you know description um it can be a short-term plan a diet can be short-term but I like to look at it from a lifestyle a lifestyle way of eating versus a diet a lot of people do feel that the you know the description that you provided about a diet is true they they think of it as a beginning and an end and they have a goal in mind and once that goal is attained the diet's done or if the goal is never attained then the diet just kind of goes on the Wayside right so they just kind of start to incorporate their normal eating habits and all those properties are then lost so I think that's where uh we're doing um false service to you know the American public in the nation about talking about diets that have these short-term benefits we really need to talk about a lifestyle of eating um I do feel that there are certain diets that need to be followed for certain short periods of time to gain a certain benefit but then there's a lifestyle after that that needs to be maintained well and that's what we're talking about today the the ultimate uh kind of Lifestyle diet uh which is the Mediterranean diet so before we get into a bunch of specifics as to what you eat on this plan um let's talk about why it's deemed so healthy and what kind of benefits you get out of it sure so there's been several clinical studies proving the benefits of the Mediterranean diet so what it does it looks at the countries around the Mediterranean there did a seven country study and they looked at all these study all these countries and how they ate and and noticed that there was a theme around the countries that lived around the Mediterranean Sea and that they ate very similar foods and they had a lot less health problems okay like what sort of health problems are we talking about then so let's let's kind of roll through um some of the biggies there that it was going to help with cardiovascular disease and then certainly they had some boosts and Longevity right so it's more longevity and heart disease related is what we found so really more of a cardio protective benefit to their style of eating and then I saw other things um lower risk of dementia uh cancer risk down gut health weight control I mean all of that kind of gets tied into that form of eating yeah my inflammatory diet as well so when we talk about the properties of what a Mediterranean diet is it's very similar to the properties of what can support the suppression of inflammation and a lot of those disease States if not all of them are a byproduct of inflammation let's talk about inflammation for men because I think in most people you think about inflammation is when you you sprain your ankle and it swells up but the reality is that you have little bits of inflammation that go on all the time within your body when even if you just don't eat right or something happens what what's going on there right so there's the inflammatory processes where you create chemicals in the body that are trying to fight off this inflammation right so your body's kind of fighting against this foreign form of substance that might be in your body that's causing the inflammation which we know there are tons of substances that cause inflammation and are in our world not from from our diet and from our the air we breathe and the products we put on our skin and the water that we drink they can all create all levels of forms of toxicity in our body that then our body fights again and that creates inflammation in our body in our cells and our inside our body and our organs and that inflammation eventually leads to disease that's just such a just a fascinating concept because you just don't think when you eat something it's gonna make your your arteries like swell or you know some inflammation come in but the truth is if you put garbage in your body just that's how it reacts right it's fighting to get it out right so we want foods that it's only going to support its growth it's going to support the cell protection it's gonna create those anti-inflammatory um chemicals and enzymes and things to to start working to suppress the inflammation and protect your cells protect your organs protect your entire system all right well let's talk about those Foods because that was the next on our list as we were going to go through this um if you're on the Mediterranean diet or that's how you're choosing to live that's going to be your lifestyle Choice uh what sorts of food are you going to be putting on your plate so found and we know that those all varieties of different fruits and vegetables have a variety of different antioxidants phytochemicals phytonutrients some more than others but they all provide some and the variety is the key because you're going to get that a variety of those benefits so fruits and vegetables for sure so mix it up you want a little color on your plate and that's uh those fruits and vegetables all seem to add that little splash right all different colors all different varieties try and every week is what I usually you know challenge my patients to do um so we have fruits and vegetables uh grains so if you are going to choose grains they're whole grains minimally processed things like oats and quinoa barley so grains brown or wild rice avoiding any refined products so refined flour based products so white bread white rice crackers pretzels Bakery items Etc what what and when you talk about like uh whole grains versus those refined ones what's happening in that process that makes the the whole grain so much better than something that that's a little more refined and been through the the processing sure so we know all those nutrients are found in the whole grain once we start to strip the outside layers of that grain once we start to add chemicals to it extract things from it you know fortify it we're killing off all those wonderful properties that it already maintains we know antioxidants can be killed by heat so you know by by making this wonderful grain being processed we've pretty much killed all the nutritional benefit of it and then we go and add it back in that's what we call enriched flour because we've killed it off it's just not as enriched as what you might think let's keep shopping what else what else should we uh be looking for so fishes in the Mediterranean diet um again it's very easy to have fish around the Mediterranean it's the most abundant source of protein so it is a little harder to you know instill that in in Ohio specifically but when you don't live around um a body of fresh water that's readily available but um so fish is the primary source of protein are there certain fishes you should look for yeah so great question um fish high in omega-3 have been shown to suppress that inflammation even further so omega-3 fatty fish are things like salmon and Herring tuna mackerel um sardines so sea bass those are good sources of Omega-3 all fish can play a good role um so could be good sources of protein but if you're looking for specifically the fish high in omega-3 to suppress the inflammation you want to go that route okay and you said fish should be kind of the main protein in the Mediterranean diet correct yeah we recommend three meals of what should you use on those another uh those other four days so again great question poultry skinless poultry would be um the second Preferred Choice of protein um and then getting your other sources of protein from plant-based sources like grains and beans and nuts are the other great sources of protein so legumes are another foundational part of the Mediterranean diet legumes include dried beans and lentils so any any kind of bean they all provide great benefit and variability here is again key so using some beans to on a salad instead of putting meat on it or having a bean soup hummus is a great dip that has you know the properties of protein and fiber and the benefits of of having legumes in your diet um and then nuts we know nuts are a definitely integral part of the Mediterranean diet most of the nuts that are used in the Mediterranean are things like walnuts and almonds and hazelnuts um those are wonderful things to include on a regular basis but if you don't favor those all nuts can be included what I just recommend is trying to incorporate the Mediterranean style nuts more often so if you do favor more like peanuts or cashews trying to mix in the other nuts is is key and then nuts are great but you want to be careful with portion because they can add up calories very quickly okay do they really add that much protein because it's it's it's almost hard to believe that that you can substitute in legumes and nuts and and have it be a a full substitute for for beef um but I mean it sounds like it can work that way um portion and volume meat has about seven grams of protein you would have to eat a half a cup of beans to get that much protein so volume by volume it doesn't necessarily match so you do have to eat more legumes to get in the amount of protein you would in in beef or lean source of of Flesh meats or fish but um you know incorporating some of that plant protein in combination with eating things like fish and poultry you certainly can meet your protein needs you can still eat egg whites and Greek yogurt those are great sources of protein as well so it's just a matter of getting a good variety sources of protein and noting the fact that although beans and legumes may not be as high in protein when you compare volume as meat but they have a lot of other benefits that the meat may not have and you know since we're talking about meat and you had mentioned eggs and dairy and things like that I mean those are obviously really big items for in a lot of people's uh on their shopping list um is there a place for those within the Mediterranean diet absolutely so things like yogurt um is it can be encouraged daily on the Mediterranean diet we do suggest more of like a Greek style yogurt or plain yogurt so something that's not packed with a lot of sugar a lower fat varieties so skim or zero percent fat one or two percent fat would be fine so you just want to avoid the full fat varieties of that but yeah yogurt and milk is is acceptable um again in moderation cheese is the one that uh I think we really encourage um limitation so she's the recommendation on the Mediterranean diet is about three to four ounces of cheese a week so that does not come out to be a lot most people eat about three to four ounces of cheese a day so we want to avoid all processed cheeses again because they are not you know leading us to a healthy outcomes then we want to choose more milder lighter cheeses something like a feta cheese or a fresh mozzarella a ricotta or goat cheese very very light cheeses and then again still limiting the portion of that what about like baked goods and things like that since we all do you know we like to delve into that every so often um is there room for for that in there also sure so commercial baked goods are avoided so there's really not much room for commercial baked goods special occasions once a year fine but on a regular weekly basis no um but if you want something baked it is encouraged you bake at home so you can adjust and include healthier ingredients so certainly you can make a banana bread or you know some um cookies or something with the acceptable ingredients so using things like whole grain flour um you know healthier oils using more like egg whites reducing the sugar maybe using honey or using some fruit to sweeten so making adjustments to help that baked good be more nutrient dense you had mentioned the healthier oils too I take it it seems like the one that always comes up at the Mediterranean diet is olive oil what's so magical about that yeah so olive oil has a ton of antioxidant properties so we know antioxidants protect ourselves from damage so that can really help you know suppress things like cancer and heart disease Etc and then there's a lot of um polyphenols in olive oil that has been shown to be protective from cholesterol standpoint of blood pressure standpoint a lot of proven benefits to extra virgin olive oil and you know one thing that commonly comes up when you're following a diet or an eating plan is that it can be Bland so you know in the Mediterranean they use olive oil very freely and very generously and it does provide a lot of great flavor to the food that they're eating and we found that even though they're using it so generously there have not been negative health benefits oh wow so that's another really key factor of the Mediterranean diet if we found that this kind of oil that adds so much flavor to our Foods can't it doesn't have negative Health outcomes where we've always kind of focused on low fat when it comes to heart health and it's very refreshing to know that we don't necessarily need to focus on that when using olive oil extra virgin olive oil you know just just going through this whole list with you what what really strikes me is just how how accessible all these foods are I mean this isn't some kind of wild exotic list of of items that you need to go get these are all things that you know we're familiar with that you see that you probably buy when you're out but it's just a matter it sounds like I'm focusing on eating them a little more and putting together certain plates absolutely I think that's what is the Saving Grace of the Mediterranean diet it's why people can follow it for so many you know centuries and Decades of families following this style of eating is because it really just does focus on Whole Foods that we all know we all see they're accessible to everyone you know some some fish may be less accessible to some people than others but you really just you know just Seafood in general is accessible to most people right poultry is accessible to most people not so all of these things are so accessible and there's so much variety within each category of the food that you can find something you enjoy in each category and kind of start there and then start to kind of get a little bit more adventurous and starting to try different types of fish or or vegetables or fruit or grains or whatever it might be but you know there's almost something that everyone can enjoy in each category and really it just focuses on filling up your diet and your plate with these single ingredient foods that have so much nutritional benefit and really decreasing all the junk and snack foods that we're eating it just seems more natural and and it's it's not going to rule out a ton of different stuff other than like you said that really processed just the stuff that we know deep down is probably bad for us sure sure and you know red meat can be included in moderation in the Mediterranean diet so we usually recommend red meat only about one meal a week and that red meat is classified as Beef Pork veal and lamb now if you have you know pretty Progressive heart disease I'd say probably consume less than that but if you're just kind of protecting your heart and doing it for overall heart health ready can be included in moderation well Julia we always on this podcast one of the things we pride ourselves on are giving people some kind of action tips that they can use if they want to kind of follow the Mediterranean diet and and take this advice so what sort of adjustments would you have to make or what sort of tips would you give someone who wanted to start on this eating plan so I would start with trying to incorporate a fruit or a vegetable with every meal that would be the first step so every time you sit down see if you have a fruit or a vegetable and ideally progressing to having one of each and I take it people don't do that enough I mean that's what you must see as a dietitian I'd imagine yeah that is one of the biggest problems it's just an adequate intake of vegetables put so that would be a very good first step and then seeing you know Finding which of those fruits and vegetables you enjoy and continuing to consuming consume them throughout the day multiple times a day and the hope is that you eventually start to decrease the amount of refined grain and and you know process protein or meats that you're eating and then incorporate more into you know fresh meats and fish and then you know minimally processed grains would eating more of those vegetables too I'd imagine uh during the day I mean they're they're they're filling so that will help just with the the desire to binge snack and reach for those chips and the pretzels and and all the other things that we just kind of grab when you get the grum bellies around three o'clock absolutely I think that's one of the biggest pitfalls that most people fall into is that they are hungry and they tend to grab a snack food that's not going to fill them not going to provide them nutrition any nutrition but going to provide them with a ton of extra calories a ton of extra fat ton of extra sodium that's not leading to their health goals whether it be lowering your blood pressure cholesterol or losing weight so we're we're getting in a habit of just grabbing the wrong food instead of filling our our day with fruits and vegetables which can be so much more filling so much more satisfying provides so many more nutrients and antioxidants that are just going to support the whole picture not to mention the fact that they're extremely low in calories low in if in any sodium low in fat if any fat and naturally have natural sugars no added sugars so so many benefits there so that would be really the integral First Step would be incorporating a fruit and a vegetable with every meal what about as far as like I say getting used to fish I know a lot of people people have some strong opinions on on eating fish um how do you kind of get past that so that is a tough one to get past so I generally recommend starting with a very mild fish a very very mild fish and maybe starting um at a restaurant like when you're going out to eat you know usually that's it's usually prepared the best way um so trying that maybe incorporating fish more when you're eating out and then trying to find what kind of fish you like and how you like it prepared and then experimenting a little bit there at home um starting with whatever fish you already know you do like whether it's shellfish or Whitefish or salmon whatever it is just trying to incorporate that on a regular basis even canned tuna can be included so you just want to be careful with like sodium and Mercury but there's um certainly ways around that when you're purchasing canned tuna but um that's another great way to get just kind of get your feet wet um don't look at it from okay all of a sudden I have to make fish my primary source of protein that's I think the worst way of look looking at it we want to just start slowly let me try to have fish um you know every Friday let's start there and I'm going to try different kinds and see what I like and I would encourage that with like fruits and vegetables that's why I said try to add one or the other each time you eat and then eventually progress this all seems to go back to the the very first thing we were talking about which is the the concept of a diet is not a like you know a forced eating style for for this time but as a lifestyle and kind of a lot of different choices but you're just kind of making them in a in a big picture sort of way yeah and I I really think that you know when you try something once and you don't like it I think you should definitely give it another try so Fish can be tough sometimes it can be prepared and you know not prayer prepared properly or wasn't stored properly so it could have that fishy taste that can really turn people off um and you know if that's happened to me I definitely had a piece of fish I'm like oh I'm gonna give a fish a break for a little bit um and that's okay but just going back to it and trying again and I would say that again with anything new that you try whether it's hummus or a quinoa or a different kind of vegetable or fruit or something that you don't like just again keeping a very open mind and trying it again or trying it a different kind or a new way of preparing it and seeing if you can incorporate it more regularly and finding a way that you can enjoy it because the key is to find enjoyment out of food no one wants to be told to eat a bunch of foods that they don't enjoy that's never going to be sustainable and it's not realistic so you really want to there's so much variety and so many options in the Mediterranean diet just a matter of finding what you like as a part of the Mediterranean diet and instilling those on a regular basis when we're talking about fish too I take it we should try to stay away from fried fish there's other ways to prepare it that we need to need to look at there yeah definitely deep fried never seems to be the healthy answer to anything so no but I do um just you know really minimizing you don't want to cook in high levels of heat with extra virgin olive oil anyhow so you'd have to use more of a refined olive oil if you're gonna cook in a pan in high heat but I usually say turn the heat down use the least amount of oil you can kind of coat the pan and put a lid you know and just kind of kind of get that crispiness without over frying or overcooking it so I think you know using a little bit of pan frying is totally acceptable if you even want to bread it there's you know some whole grain bread crumbs you can use some people use flax seeds there's ground up like almond flour you can use to bread it like there's certainly ways that you can incorporate some of that flavor without you know having the full full-fledged typical you know deep fried breaded fish you can try to look at home and I say that for anything in the Mediterranean diet and that's where that baked goods comes in you know like you know that full store-bought you know pound cake you can try to find something that you can make at home that can give you that same benefit and pleasure without having so many unhealthy ingredients in there see this was so great the Mediterranean diet seems like it offers just about everything you would want you just you have to look for different ways to get it and and then just kind of experiment um experiment with the food and have some fun while you're doing it yeah definitely experiment with it um and it is more fun if you do it with a group or with a partner so you know trying to to navigate this on your own can be challenging so if you can recruit a family member or friend or you know try to see you know how you can incorporate this in in your um social network too can be really helpful and then you can bounce ideas off and and share recipes that can be really helpful too well you have certainly filled our plate with just a ton of uh healthful information today um anything else you would like to add about the Mediterranean diet not really really it's it has so many positive benefits that any small step towards the Mediterranean diet is a step in the right direction all right well that sums it up perfectly Julia thank you so much for being here and uh can't wait for you to come back thank you so much for having me [Music] there's a reason why the Mediterranean diet grabs so much attention it works Decades of research show how this eating plan can help you live longer and healthier so give it a try your heart will love you for it till next time be well [Music] foreign [Music]

#Mediterranean #Diet #Heart #Desires #Julia #Zumpano

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