What's the healthiest diet?

Dr. David Katz and his team at Yale’s Prevention Research Center compared the major diets of today: low carb, low fat, low glycemic, Mediterranean, DASH (Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension), Paleo, vegan, Keto and a handful of other diets. Their conclusion: no diet is clearly the best, but there are common elements across eating patterns that are proven to be beneficial for health. According to Katz, there is no confusion among experts; “A diet of minimally processed foods close to nature, predominantly plants, is decisively associated with health promotion and disease prevention.” The average supermarket in the United States offers in excess of 40,000 products, the majority of which are processed foods.

The True Health Initiative  is a coalition of world-renowned and diverse experts who have come together and agreed on the simple and actionable fundamental truths about diet and health. These experts are the celebs in the science and nutrition community. There is a clear global consensus from the world’s nutrition scientists and experts about the healthiest dietary pattern. Some of the healthiest people on earth (i.e., centarians who live 100 years or longer) no matter their geography or ethnicity, eat surprisingly similar foods. Their diet is mostly plant-based include fruits and veggies, nuts, seeds, spices and whole grains.  Researchers also agree that over 80 percent of chronic diseases like cancer and heart disease could be prevented by following a healthy dietary patterns, regular physical exercise and not smoking.

For the third year in a row, the Mediterranean diet has been named the best diet overall in the U.S. News & World Report annual rankings. The Mediterranean diet, which is associated with high dietary fiber, moderate amounts of alcohol (yes!) and limited meat, antioxidants and polyphenols from fruits, veggies and spices, has been proven to reduce the risk of heart disease, cancer risk, metabolic syndrome and preservation of cognitive function. A 2017 review and meta-analysis concluded that the Mediterranean diet might offer protection from various cancers. In 2013, a study linked the antioxidants and fiber content in the Mediterranean diet with good mental and physical health.

There is no single definition of the Mediterranean diet, but one group of scientists in 2015 used the following as their basis of research (baseline calories are 2,200 per day).

Vegetables: Include 3 to 9 servings a day. Tomatoes, peppers, onions, garlic, eggplant, zucchini, leafy greens plus dozens of others.

Fresh fruit: Up to 2 servings a day. Melon, apples, oranges, peaches, lemons, berries and oranges.

Whole grains: From 1 to 13 servings a day.

Nuts and seeds: almonds, cashews, pecans, walnuts, sunflowers seeds.

Fat — mostly unsaturated — made up 37% of the total calories. Unsaturated fat comes from plant sources, such as olives and avocado.

Fish: sardines and other oily fish (like almond) and shellfish

Meat: free-range chicken and grass-fed red meat (less than 2 servings per week)

Fiber: 33 grams of fiber a day. Legumes (beans, lentils and chickpeas) and whole grain cereals accompanying many meals

Dairy products: Cheese and yogurt are the main dairy foods.

Drinks: Coffee, tea and red wine in moderation.

For those that follow intermittent fasting, the data is quite strong. More on that in another post.