Is there an “Ideal” diet to achieve perfect health?
This past summer Forbes came out with it’s “Best Diets of 2021” list. (See the full list here: https://www.forbes.com/health/body/best-diets/)
The Mediterranean Diet held the top ranking spot because of its “ “harmonic combination” of antioxidants and anti-inflammatory properties.”
And the Flexitarian Diet, aka the “semi-vegetarian” diet, came in at number two.
A flexitarian diet is for those who enjoy a juicy steak now and then but want to reap the health benefits of a plant-based diet.
Because the Mediterranean diet got the top spot does that mean it’s the ideal diet?
Let’s take a look at the evidence.
More and more studies are being done to answer the age-old question: “What is the best diet?” The answer often depends on your personal goals. But, if your goal is to live a longer and healthier life with less risk of chronic disease, keep reading.
When it comes to reducing your risks of heart disease, obesity, diabetes, and several cancers, as well as supporting bone and brain health, there seems to be a dietary pattern that gets recommended over and over again. And for good reason. Yet another big review study was recently published that looked at data from 153 studies (involving 6,550,664 participants!) to answer this seemingly simple question.
Researchers from several universities across the United States reviewed existing studies to see if there was an association between dietary patterns and “all-cause mortality” (death from all causes).
They looked for studies that compared what adults ate and for how long they lived.
Here’s what they found. Adults who ate more vegetables, fruits, legumes, nuts, whole grains, unsaturated vegetable oils, fish, and lean meat or poultry (when meat was included) were associated with a decreased risk of death from all causes.
These dietary patterns were also low in red and processed meat, high-fat dairy, and refined carbohydrates or sweets. In other words, a long life is linked to eating an abundance of plants, along with some fish, and optionally lean meat or poultry.
Is there a name for this type of healthy diet? A number of different “diets” recommend this eating style. They include the Mediterranean, prudent, Healthy Eating Index, DASH (Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension), or plant-based diets. These are all considered to be high-quality diets with nutrient-dense foods and are associated with better health, regardless of diet type or dietary pattern name.
You’ll notice that this study isn’t recommending one specific diet or foods, but rather it takes a more holistic view of the overall eating style or pattern and looks at broad categories of foods in several different named diets.
Pro Tip: “Dietary patterns are the quantities, proportions, variety, or combination of different foods, beverages, and nutrients in diets as well as the frequency with which they are habitually consumed.”
You may be asking yourself when should someone start adopting an eating pattern like this?
How does now sound? Regardless of which life stage you’re in, having a higher-quality, more nutrient-dense diet will help support your health and longevity. These nutrition recommendations can apply to any age and stage to help reduce your risk of chronic diseases and mortality.
Overall, “nutrient-dense dietary patterns, regardless of pattern label or name, were associated with significantly lower all-cause mortality risk.”
Let’s sum up. Enjoy more:
- vegetables
- fruits
- legumes
- nuts
- whole grains
- unsaturated vegetable oils
- fish
- lean meat or poultry (if you want to eat meat)
Enjoy less:
- red and processed meat
- high-fat dairy
- refined carbohydrates or sweets
- Processed and ultra processed foods
These days with all the so called “ideal” diets to choose from, we are often left confused and overwhelmed. This study provides some perspective.
Is there a place for a specific diet? That depends. If you have specific health goals or concerns a more targeted approach can be beneficial. At Metabolic Balance we develop a specific dietary pattern based on your unique biochemistry and health goals. To learn more click on the link.