Let’s start off with this quote:

Italians are the world’s healthiest people, according to the latest Global Health Index by Bloomberg. A child born today in Italy, raised on a diet that includes plenty of pasta, bread, cheese, meat, and wine, can expect to live into its octogenarian years.

A healthy diet comes easily to Italians (those in Italy…not so much to many Italian Americans, who ranked at #34 on The Global Health Index….read on). Food has always been the utmost of importance to Italians. You won’t find a Starbucks or a Dunkin’ Donuts anywhere in Italy. That’s because even the simple act of having a cup of coffee, in Italy, is a time to be cherished and nurtured with the finest of coffee, cleanest of water, hand brewed in the least stressful manner possible.

Despite a stagnant economy and high youth unemployment, Italians are in better shape than Americans, Canadians and Brits, with lower blood pressure and cholesterol and better mental health. So the stressful things in life don’t appear to stress out Italians all that much. The country also has many doctors and a diet rich in vegetables and healthy olive oil.

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Italians also have a rich family and social life. Romantic trysts don’t stop the elderly. Nor does age limit ones ability to hop on a Vespa and get to where they want to independently go. Staying active well into their 70s and 80s is an Italian secret that’s quite about ripe now to share.

As in much of Italy, their diet is low in meat, based around fresh local produce, and is high in legumes and pulses. Research has shown that the regional red wine and cheese enjoyed daily by local inhabitants play an important role in keeping them forever young.

Cheeses made from fresh sheep and goat’s milk, like ricotta and the traditional casu ajedu, contain high doses of the lactobacillus bacteria which has been shown to boost digestive, genital and urinary health and are thought to play a key role in maintaining pensioners vitality.

Throw some fresh veggies on a woodfired pizza and you may just have the most healthiest meal ever!

The Mediterranean Diet was voted best overall diet by WEBMD in 2020 and again, going forward, best diet for 2021. Click here to find out more about the Mediterranean Diet.

Jan. 2, 2020 — 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. In 2018, the Mediterranean diet shared top honors with the DASH (Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension) diet. Both focus on fruits, vegetables, and whole grains.

Compared to diets like keto and Whole30, the Mediterranean Diet isn’t very restrictive. In addition, it is more like a lifestyle as opposed to a strict daily regimen. The diet is based on research that has found that folks living in countries bordering the Mediterranean Sea (as in Italy!!!) live longer and suffer less from diseases like cancer and heart disease. Potential benefits of following the Mediterranean Diet include weight loss and brain and heart health, cancer prevention and control and prevention of diabetes.

Being that it is January and a start of a new year, many people go on a diet right about now. My advice: give The Mediterranean Diet a chance. You may just find yourself in a whole new happy place. Mangia! And if you are feeling stressed out about our American government right now, just know that Italians get a new government about every year or so. In other words, government is NOT on their top priority list. Enjoying life, eating well, socializing with friends and family are more important to them. And really….sitting down to a fantastic, healthy pasta meal with a glass of chianti would make anyone smile!