Western food habits are a concern over the growing obesity levels in Europe, North America, and the so called developed countries.
Discovering the ideal diet is becoming more and more important for people who want to ameliorate health and lose weight.
Luckily, there is a diet that is healthy, natural, delicious and has proven to prolong life!
It is said that Crete offers a nutritionist’s dream diet, not only because it is a delicious choice, but also because research conducted on an international scale has proved that the people of Crete have the lowest coronary heart disease and cancer in the world due to their lifestyle and traditional diet. Their cuisine remained unchanged over the centuries is one of their secrets to longevity.
What do Cretans eat? Since antiquity, Cretans eat anything that their rich soil produces. The main staples of the diet are fruit, beans, pulses and vegetables.
When you adopt the Cretan diet, the basic rules to follow are to consume:
- lots of fresh fruits as typical daily dessert,
- extra-virgin olive oil as principal fat,
- breads, grains, dry beans, nuts, and seeds,
- olive oil
Crete is a big producer of olives. That’s why Cretans consume a lot of olive oil, only pure olive oil is used in all preparations as principal fat, even to make sweets/cakes with natural sweeteners, honey and grape-juice syrup. You’ll be surprised how the olive oil keeps the cake super moist and gives it a tasty flavor.
In this beautiful island, inhabitants use plenty of herbs and aromatic plants to add flavour to their meals. Salads are also a large part of their diet, always dressed with olive oil.
Cretans eat about three times more bread than the average American eats, but it is all made from whole grains, loaded with fiber.
Moderate amounts of red meat, fish and poultry are consumed weekly by Cretans. Wine is an indispensable accompaniment to their meals, one or two cups per day .
Simplicity is a major feature of the Cretan Diet. Cretan dishes are made simply and quickly with no fancy cream and few spices. In the Cretan diet there’s no difficult combinations or strange exotic ingredients.