There are quite a few countries that are scoring high on the health report. They love mixing health, fun, flavor and a little history into their dishes. Here are the healthiest cuisines in the world and how you can incorporate certain things about them into your diet.
1. Mediterranean Cuisine
The Mediterranean cuisine is one of the healthiest in the world. Greece, Spain, Morocco and Cyprus have revolutionized a fun, happy and healthy diet. More of a way of life, the cuisine has been studied for years for its health benefits. Researchers say that the Mediterranean diet helps lower risk of heart diseases, stroke, obesity, and diabetes. Some studies even claim that this particular cuisine helps to prevent cancer, owing to their omega 3 fatty acid content, fiber, and antioxidants.1
Their food is rich in olive oil (great for the heart), almonds, sesame seeds, rosemary, parsley, seafood at least twice a week, lentils, and chickpeas (for hummus). They are strong on the vegetable front, owing a lot of their diet to eggplants, spinach, tomatoes, and cauliflower.
What can you do? Make the switch to extra virgin olive oil for cooking, snack on nuts, eat tuna, and make sure to have those leafy greens.
2. Indian Cuisine
Full of spices and flavor, the Indian cuisine is a great source of health goodness. Indians use a lot of ant-inflammatory ingredients into their dish like turmeric, ginger, cumin, cardamom, black pepper, and garam masala.
Because of their low meat consumption coupled with use of spices, it makes a great combination to reduce chances of Alzheimer’s. They incorporate a lot of yogurt in their diet and love their lentils. Indians eat a lot of dal curry (a dish made out of lentils, tomatoes, turmeric, ginger and garlic) throughout their life.
What can you do? Incorporate spices like turmeric into your diet. Use ginger and garlic for your dishes.
3. Japanese Cuisine
No surprise here, the Japanese cuisine is renowned for its amazing health benefits. They are the highest consumers of fish in the world. Seaweed (great for thyroid), green tea, whole-soy foods, and shiitake mushrooms are other favorite parts of their cuisine. They prefer their food quickly stir fried or with a light steam. Another amazing fact about their diet is that they follow a practice known as “Hara Hachi Bu” which means eat until you are 80% full.
Okinawa in Japan is known to have the world’s highest life expectancy, several going beyond a 100 years!
What can you do? Indulge in the flavors of miso soup (contains seaweed and tofu) and eat stir-fry veggies.
4. Mexican Cuisine
Are you picturing heavy burritos and nachos? No, the healthiest part of their cuisine lies in authentic Mexican food. People who include a lot of beans into their diet reduce their chances of chronic diseases and live healthier lives. Their diet is rich in tomatoes and fresh corn as well.
What can you do? Include black beans, red beans, avocado, and fresh ground corn in your diet.
5. Korean Cuisine
Korean foods come with a lot of spice and veggies. They love their soups with tofu, fish, and shellfish. Another highlight of their cuisine is a lack of dependence on oil. Most of the food are boiled, steamed, or grilled. The popular Kimchi is considered to be one of the healthiest dishes in the world. The super healthy dish is made of fermented vegetables like cabbage and includes anti-cancer ingredients like ginger and garlic. They snack on baked sweet potato and cooked squid.
What can you do? Indulge in steamed food, mushrooms, and tofu. You could also create bibimbap, an extremely popular dish made of mixed vegetables and rice.
6. Italian Cuisine
Traditional Italian cuisine revolves around the use of tomatoes, olive oil, oregano, garlic, and fresh herbs like parsley. Most of these ingredients are great for digestion and boost of anti-cancer properties. They focus on a lot of fresh produce and consume very less processed food. Their meals involve fish, vegetables, fruits and a glass of red wine. They also love their pan carasau, a whole-grain bread.
What can you do? Eat whole wheat pasta, indulge in a garden minestrone, and remember to coat and not pour your dish with sauce. Dress your salads with balsamic vinegar mixed with extra virgin oil.
7. French Cuisine
The French believe the secret to being slim and healthy lies in portion size and having a happy attitude towards food. It does also help their cuisine involves plenty olive oil, tomatoes, and herbs. Butter and cheese are used almost for every meal but everything is about smaller portions. They also can’t go without their red wine.
What can you do? Take off the fat from the meat, don’t use a lot of salt instead use spices or herbs, and you can’t go wrong with a good french onion soup.
8. Nordic Cuisine
Freshly baked rye bread, root vegetables, and cabbage defines the most important features of the Nordic cuisine. The Nordic cuisine comprises of food from Sweden, Norway, Finland, Iceland, Denmark, and Netherlands. It is considered as one of the healthiest in the world, boosting of people with low levels of obesity and high life expectancy. People eat a lot of fish like pickled herring and mackerel. They especially love blueberries and cruciferous vegetables like cabbages, cauliflower, and broccoli. They prefer their food poached, fermented, or smoked, unlike other cuisines that are largely dependent on oil.
What can you do? Load up on root veggies like leeks, beetroot, carrots, turnip and potatoes into your diet. Eat plenty of berries and try to eat fatty fish twice a week.
It’s noteworthy to say that people who belong to a certain geographical area and eat their local produce have higher chances of being healthy. But there are certain healthy common things you can learn from each cuisine that you can add to your diet.
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