Home


Heart disease is an umbrella term for a number of different diseases affecting the heart. As of 2007, it is the leading cause of death in the United States, England, Canada and Wales, killing one person every 34 seconds in the United States alone.
The blood vessels consist of arteries, arterioles, capillaries, venules, and veins. All blood is carried in these vessels. The arteries, which are strong, flexible, and resilient, carry blood away from the heart and bear the highest blood pressures. Because arteries are elastic, they narrow (recoil) passively when the heart is relaxing between beats and thus help maintain blood pressure. The arteries branch into smaller and smaller vessels, eventually becoming very small vessels called arterioles. Arteries and arterioles have muscular walls that can adjust their diameter to increase or decrease blood flow to a particular part of the body.
2008-12-05

Mediterranean Diet - Lowering Your Risk of Heart Disease  

The Mediterranean diet is derived from the lifestyle of those who live around the Mediterranean, it comprises more than 30 varieties of cuisine ranging from Greek and Italian to Jordanian and Portuguese. All countries, their own cultural role in the diet if the base is basically the same. The Mediterranean diet is rich in fresh fruits and vegetables, carbohydrates such as bread and cereals and legumes. And of course you can be happy in limited quantities of fish, chicken and dairy products. You can even treat with a little wine.

Although most research on the Mediterranean diet and its health benefits are watching, growing number of research associate Mediterranean diet with more longevity (anti-aging effect) and lower figures diseases such as heart disease, Alzheimer's disease, diabetes, cancer and Hypertension, compared with the Western diet. The people in this region consume moderate red wine, olive oil, whole grain foods, legumes, fruits and vegetables high in antioxidant content.

The main source of fat is olive oil. Dairy products (mostly cheese and yogurt), fish and poultry consumed low to moderate amounts, zero to four eggs consumed weekly, red meat consumed in small quantities, and wine consumed in low to moderate amounts, normally with meals.

In its most to the Mediterranean diet is a diet-replica that, based on traditional food leads in a number of countries around the Mediterranean. There is no special diet than each of these countries has its own food traditions, regions and even within one country can have very different menus. Nevertheless, there is some consistency between the countries in this field. Most people in Mediterranean countries traditionally eat a diet high in fruit, vegetables, whole grains, beans and legumes, seeds and nuts. In general, they have a tendency to use oil as their primary fat, and focus on unsaturated fats. And they eat only moderate amounts of poultry, fish, milk and food, and light red wine.

A large part of the Mediterranean diet is invented by foods from plant sources. This means, bread, cereals and other carbohydrates, with an emphasis on whole grains, vegetables and fruits, and seeds, nuts, legumes and others. You can start your diet regulation by the decision a better selection of vegetables; prefer whole grains, olive oil and your main source of fat. Drink wine and cheese to eat, without only in moderation. Red meat must be treated in much the same way.

The food is minimally processed and eaten as fresh as possible. The primary fat is olive oil, not butter, hydrogenated oils or animal fats, as it often is in the United States. However, this oil is not used carefully. The people in those regions eat it on a regular basis, yet it seems not to suffer because of poor health. Fish and poultry is a low to moderate part of the diet, and red meat is eaten only rarely. Wine is drunk regularly, but in moderate quantities with meals.

 

However I like to suggest using the vital rules of a Mediterranean diet for everyday eating - likely, choosing foods rich in monounsaturated over saturates, eating more fruit and vegetables, basic meals on starchy foods, and eating more fish and beans and smaller quantity of processed foods.

Get more information about Mediterranean Diet.

For the moment, why not start to incorporate the Mediterranean way of life into your own daily schedule? All right, you might not be able to take a daily siesta, but you can start to get more creative in the kitchen, support the family to eat together around the table and at present winter is here, even enjoy meals inside.

Making small positive changes in due course will help you achieve a much healthier life, it'll also be easier to maintain a good weight and keep fit and active.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Indrani_Bhattacherjee

What next?

You can also bookmark this post using your favorite bookmarking service:

Related Posts by Categories