%0 Journal Article
%T Culture and Mediterranean Diet - Culture and Mediterranean Diet - Open Access Pub
%A Iglesias L¨®pez M.T
%J OAP | Home | International Journal of Nutrition | Open Access Pub
%D 2018
%X We discuss different aspects of the Mediterranean diet, including the historical, anthropological and cultural. The different foods that are characteristic of the Mediterranean diet are used to create all kinds of recipes, which are valued in gastronomic terms and are also highly nutritional. Bread, wine and extra virgin olive oil have been symbols of civilisation and prosperity for the peoples of the Mediterranean for thousands of years. The key elements of the Mediterranean diet are variety, moderation and the predominance of vegetables over food sourced from animals. These are complemented by a philosophy of life that values personal relationships, the pursuit of happiness and physical activity. A colourful cuisine has developed around the Mediterranean, which is rich and aromatic and which might be said to live in harmony with nature. The Mediterranean diet is about sharing, enjoying conversation around the table, and relaxing after the meal with a siesta. With the globalisation of food, the chronobiological rhythm of food intake has become skewed, and food industrialisation has led to the homogenisation of eating behaviours. The great chefs of today are artists, bold and dazzlingly creative, masters of harmony and subtlety, arousing hedonistic pleasures with this new form of artistic expression. DOI10.14302/issn.2379-7835.ijn-18-2272 The key to the intellectual, ethical and aesthetic harmony of human existence is the art of combining what is true and penultimate and what is final and uncertain for Man¡¯ La¨ªn Entralgo18 In 2010, UNESCO designated the Mediterranean diet as part of the intangible cultural heritage of humanity. This ancient cultural heritage, which has evolved throughout history and is probably one of the healthier, more prudent and balanced dietary models currently in existence, is now, in the 21st century, in danger of being lost. The history of food is the crux of the history of society, and combines culture and nature, and both the spirit and the body1, 2. The Mediterranean diet has also been linked to a lower risk of depression and better cognitive function; there is also an inverse relationship between fruit and vegetable consumption and perceived stress and depressive symptoms26, 27, 28, 29. Bread, wine and oil have shaped the identity of the Mediterranean peoples as symbols of civilization and prosperity inherited over thousands of years. We cannot talk about the Mediterranean diet without considering three perspectives: the historical, the anthropological, and the cultural. The traditional Mediterranean diet has a rich cultural
%U https://www.openaccesspub.org/ijn/article/950