Embarking on the Mediterranean diet journey can be a game-changer for your blood sugar levels. Discover six effective strategies that can help you embrace this heart-healthy, diabetes-friendly eating plan for improved glucose control.
What is the Mediterranean diet and how can you start eating one of the healthiest diets in the world?
The Mediterranean diet is rich in fruits, vegetables, whole grains, legumes, olive oil, fish and poultry, protein-over-red meat, and red wine.
- Research suggests that the benefits of following a Mediterranean-style eating pattern may be many
- Improved weight loss, better control of blood glucose (sugar) levels, and reduced risk of depression, to name a few
- Eating like a Mediterranean has also been associated with reduced levels of inflammation, a risk factor for heart attack, stroke, and Alzheimer’s disease
Sip (a Little) Wine
People who live along the Mediterranean coast prefer wine, but that doesn’t mean you should pour it at your leisure.
- When you do sip, try to do so with a meal-even better if that meal is shared with loved ones.
Mediterranean diet recommendations
Cook with olive oil
- Eat more fish
- Vegetables all day long
- Help yourself to whole grains
- Whole-grain blends of pastas and rice or mixing a whole grain half-and-half with a refined one
- Use olive oil in salad dressings and vinaigrettes
- Swap butter for olive oil when cooking
Enjoy Fruit for Dessert
Fresh fruit is a healthy way to indulge your sweet tooth
- Keep fresh fruit visible at home and keep a piece or two at work so you have a healthful snack when you start growling
- Lots of grocery stores stock exotic fruit-pick a new one to try each week
