The Mediterranean Diet is the healthiest diet recognized worldwide thanks to the great presence and variety of products: vegetables, fruits, legumes, cereals, nuts, fish rather than red meat, dairy products, eggs and extra virgin olive oil. The problem is in the pocket, vegetables are not particularly cheap.
How to make it possible to take the recommended daily amount and save at the same time?
- There are two ways to save; firstly, to consume local products directly from the producers and, secondly, to buy frozen vegetables, which perfectly preserve all their properties from a nutritional point of view and are frankly more affordable.
- As for fruit, in addition to the purchase of proximity, there are also frozen. It is true that most of them lose a lot gastronomically, but their properties remain unchanged. On the other hand, if they come from far away, besides not being sustainable, they lose vitamin content.
- Dried pulses are not a particularly expensive product and are a food with many nutrients. The only drawback is that their proteins do not have a high biological value that serve us to manufacture structures in our body; This disadvantage is solved combining in the same plate with some cereal.
- Oily fish should be eaten at least three times a week. Within these, the range of prices is enormous: from swordfish, tuna, salmon, bonito or red mullet to anchovies, sardines, horse mackerel, frigate tuna, mackerel or permit. It has the disadvantage of its short conservation in refrigerator; but for that the freezer is useful. A good solution is to freeze it once cooked and, in this way, its texture is much less altered.
- The most beneficial fat to use is extra virgin olive oil. It has a high price. There is a huge variety of olives, some stronger and spicier and others milder. At least for salads and dishes cooked with a moderate amount of fat, we should try to use this oil. As for fried foods, this oil resists the increase in temperature better than other types without altering. In any case, no type of oil should ever “smoke” because it will indicate that substances that are not recommendable are being generated.
- Milk and dairy products are an essential food in infancy. Except in case of allergy, no vegetable drink can replace its nutrients. Adults should consume cheeses with a moderate fat content and fermented dairy products (yogurt, kefir), which also provide probiotics, which, together with prebiotics (vegetable fiber), contribute to maintaining the microbiota in perfect condition and, therefore, our organism.
Our generation has a long and increasing life expectancy. The quality of life we enjoy will depend to a large extent on our habits (diet, physical activity).