Dr. Ancel Keys, who discovered the Mediterranean Diet

(Photo: Front Page of Times: Dr. Ancel Keys, father of the Mediterranean Diet)

You may want to go directly to the Mediterranean Diet Weight Loss Plan

Or

To FAQ 1. ¿Who invented the Mediterranean Diet?

*******

FAQ 2. Who discovered the Mediterranean Diet?

Dr. Ancel Keys was who discovered the Mediterranean Diet. He worked at the School of Public Health of the University of Minnesota, and published in 1970 the results of an important study developed in seven countries in which he analyzed the role of the diet in the cardiovascular diseases, establishing the bases of what would be later the Mediterranean Diet.

The research was carried out with more than 12,000 men of Finland, Greece, Italy, Japan, Holland, the United States and Yugoslavia. There were high correlations between the amount of saturated fat and cholesterol in the diet of the people, their cholesterol levels and its percentage of death from cardiovascular diseases. Of these seven nations, the United States and Finland had the highest animal product consumption, the highest saturated fat intake, the highest cholesterol consumption and the highest percentage of death from cardiovascular diseases. On the contrary, the Mediterranean countries and Japan were in the opposite pole.

Dr. Keys, who discovered the Mediterranean Diet, in Madrid.

Before that, in 1952, invited by Dr. Carlos Jiménez Díaz, Dr. Keys had spent some time in Madrid. In that one occasion was lodged in the Residence of Students and, with some important collaborators, among which was Grande Covián, developed a first study relating the diet (still was not known as Mediterranean Diet) and the values of cholesterol in the blood. It carried out an analysis between the inhabitants of Vallecas and Cuatro Caminos (two Madrid districts).

The citizens of these districts almost did not drink milk nor consumed meat or butter, and they had the lowest values of cholesterol in the area, presenting – in addition – very low incidences of coronary cardiopathies. The inhabitants of the district of Salamanca, nevertheless, with a much more rich diet in saturated fat, had much higher values of cholesterol. And among them, the cases of myocardium infarct were much more frequent. In Naples he carried out observations with similar results.

The Seven Countries Study.

Coming back to the famous” The Seven Countries Study”, one of the most important discoveries was that the inhabitants of Crete, which obtained more from 40% of his calories from fat consumption, displayed the lowest cholesterol index and associated diseases.  In the Greek island, the percentage of deaths for this reason was 57 times smaller than in Finland. That is what would give later name to the Mediterranean Diet.

Most of the Greek fat intakes proceed from olive oil and olives and, the rest, from cereals, vegetables and generally “blue fish”, with something of meat and derivatives. In addition, they drank wine every day. This is the genuine Mediterranean Diet, almost identical to the diet of many others Mediterranean countries at that time.

Japan was the second country with lower index of deaths from cardiovascular diseases, due to a large extent to a diet with great amounts of fish,  Anyway, the negative aspect was that they had a high rate of deaths by cerebral hemorrhage. The same phenomenon presented some ethnic groups, like the Eskimos.

FAQ 3. Who gave name to the Mediterranean Diet?

In 1993, the Oldways organization, the Harvard School of Public Health and the World Health Organization introduced the concept of Mediterranean Diet, in a conference in Cambridge, Massachusetts and defined it as “a delicious, pleasurable, and very healthful way to eat” (Oldways).

Olways leaded the project and created as well the famous and wide world know Mediterranean Diet Pyramid. Its most important feature is all plant foods are grouped together to highlight the health benefits that they grant.

Later and the in the same decade (about 1950), Dr. Walter Willett of Harvard University’s School of Public Health promoted the Mediterranean Diet explaining it in a very understandable way.

Hereafter, the Mediterranean Diet became world-wide known as a heart protector and long life dietary pattern.

Recently has been discovered some other benefits of The Mediterranean Diet in other diseases as cancer, Alzheimer, asthma, hyperglycemia, etc.  It is also an excellent source of anti-oxidants and anti-inflammatory products.

Many people come here looking for Kagaya, the artist. Many of his works resemble the Mediterranean Sea. We want to give some information about him.

Kagaya Art

Kagaya Yutaka is a Japanese photographer or, better, digital artist. He was born in 1968 in Saitama (just north of Tokyo) and spent his childhood looking at the stars. He is known for producing meticulous and spectacular luminous images. The artist is more famous in North America than in Japan. The reason of this is his occidental style. His models are all occidental women maybe because they’re a little taller than Japanese ones. Anyway, his only exhibition known took place in Canada.

A recent survey made in the National Center of Tourism, Hospitality and Gastronomy of Marbella (Spain) has shown that the USA citizens are the most interested in the Mediterranean Diet of the whole world. And a high percentage of them consider this diet to be the best .

Everybody knows that was Dr. Ancel Keys the person who made possible discovering the secrets of the longevity of the Mediterranean people, in special the Cretans . The reasons were – of course – the olive oil, the vegetables, the carbohydrates, the fish and the balance of the food intake. But it was also the frugality, the activity, the daily exercise and the lack of stress what made the Mediterranean Diet the icon of the anti-aging fight. Many other diets try to imitate the original Mediterranean Diet and a few of them are practically equal.

In this blog you can get into the Mediterranean Diet culture and get used to it informally, that it is the best way to acquire cultures. You have to take pleasure in a diet and not to suffer a diet. Most people know that the Mediterranean Diet is the best in world, but not many are aware that it is also the most amusing one.

Don’t follow the Mediterranean Diet. Enjoy it!

Mediterranean Diet helps people live longer, healthier and without any doubt, happier lives.

One of the types of fatty fish in the Mediterranean Diet: Sardines.

Mediterranean Diet has a little of everything in it. The name was really a creation out of the amplified world region where it was really discovered: The Island of Crete. And it was largely the result of circumstances beyond any plan or design. The circumstances in which the population had to live: poverty and limited resources.

What they used to eat?

They had plenty of cereals, vegetables, some fruits like grapes, olives, wine, small fatty fish, eggs, milk, yogurt, dried fruits and nuts, cheese and something very extraordinary: Olive oil, virgin olive oil as they didn’t have any means to refine pomace. Sugar was very scarce. A rarity.

They used to eat very little meat. From time to time, “rich people” used to kill a free-range chicken. Sometimes, it could be a goat.  More frequently, several times a week, they used to cook legumes mixed with vegetables and pork conserves. Once a year, generally around winter solstice, they used to perform a pig slaughtering ceremony, the Choirosfagia, in which the sacrificed as many pigs as they could. This ceremony is inherited (still lives) from the old Greek tradition to worship Apollo in the same way and time of the year. All the meat, viscera, blood, skin was transformed in cured ham, lomo sausage, salami, chorizo, blood sausage, and many other pork products.

Anyway, one of the most important source of daily calories was bread and olive oil. They were the traditional “snacks” and sometimes no much more.  Bread and oil could reach until 40% of the calories intake in certain segments of the population.

As the same time, physical activity was very intense, generally men working as a peasants and women as housewives. Almost all day long.

Actually, the same thing was happening all around the Mediterranean Basin those years.  This is the reason why the pattern was called “Mediterranean Diet”.

This was the Crete that visited Dr. Keys team in the late 50’s.

The Sevens Countries Study

In 1965 Dr. Ancel Keys, after completing the “Seven Countries Study” divulged the fact that in Crete, where 40% of people food intake was olive oil, the heart diseases were considerably low. The research covered more than 12.000 persons from Finland, Greece, Italy, Japan, Holland, USA and Yugoslavia.

A few years later, the “Mediterranean Diet” was born.

In reality, there is not an exact formula for the Mediterranean diet, but olive oil, vegetables, cereals, legumes and physical activity were the most significant common factor.

About eighteen countries border the Mediterranean Sea. Countries with very different cultures, religions, ethnic background, economy and agricultural production. It’s difficult to say that there is only one Mediterranean Diet. Anyway, the common Mediterranean dietary pattern had these characteristics:

High intake of vegetables, fruits, bread, pasta and other cereals, potatoes, beans, nuts and seeds

Olive oil was the most important fat source and almost the unique vegetal oil used.

The proportion of dairy products, fish and poultry was low to moderate. They did not eat red meat.

Egg consumption was from one to four times a week

Wine was consumed regularly and was a habit in the meals, but in low to moderate amounts (except in Muslim countries).

Nowadays, the Mediterranean Diet has almost disappeared in many of these countries. Obesity is becoming a problem and cardiovascular diseases are rocketing.  We are trying to preserve the pattern of those years as a legacy for the future.

By the way, many people, even Institutions as Empowered Hospital write:

mediterranian diet

Others write:

mediteranian diet

The correct spelling is:

mediterranean diet