MEDITERRANEAN DIET SECRETS
By, S. Steve Dounis
The Mediterranean Diet is more than fruits, nuts, seeds, herbs, seafood, chicken, lamb, pork, veal, vegetables, onions, garlic, olive oil, olives, lemons, parsley and feta cheese. It is a way of life. In countries like Greece, for instance, the diet is related to the fasts and feasts of the Greek Orthodox Christian Church. As an example, for those Orthodox Christians who practice the faith strictly, meat is eaten only 145 days out of the year. How is this, you may ask?
Every Wednesday and Friday are meat free days year around, except for the great feasts of Pascha (Easter) and Christmas when there is no fasting the week following these feasts (and at some other times). There is the 40-day fast for Christmas. The Pre-Lenten fasts. The 40-day fast for Lent leading up to Holy Week and Pascha. The fast during Holy Week. Other fasts include the 15 days in the first of August, for the Dormition (falling asleep) of the Virgin Mary. Plus, many other minor fasts throughout the year adding up to 220 days without eating meat. Outside of monks in the monasteries and some of the elderly “old-timers”, there are very few who actually follow the guidelines of fasting strictly. But, most will try to do the best they can depending on their age, physical ability, and other limiting factors. Seafood, legumes, fruits, nuts, bread and Greek olives are some of the fare eaten during fasting periods.
Another distinction concerning the people of the Mediterranean is that most of the population eat their big meal in the middle of the day, usually for lunch, followed by a one to two hour nap. How do they do this? Stores and businesses close around 2 p.m. giving everyone time off to go eat and nap. In Greece, after their nap, the Greeks will have a cup of Greek coffee along with some fruit and/or baked sweets as a pick-up. All this gives everyone a breather during the day and relaxing time to share with their families. Stores and businesses re-open around 5 p.m. and close again around 9 p.m. Supper, usually taken around 10 p.m. or 11 p.m., consists of mezethakia (appetizers), or leftovers from lunch, plus fruit and yogurt. They don’t eat much at night. Of course, there are variations on all these examples.
Besides what they eat or don’t eat, most Mediterraneans walk more than we do in the States. They are more physically fit. Of course, everything for them is within walking distance so they don’t really have a need for a car. They use their cars to take trips or visit areas too far to walk.
Seafood, lamb, chicken, rabbit, pork, turkey and veal are all popular entrees usually baked, stewed, or broiled. They don’t eat much beef. Fried items consist mainly of fried squid and fried potatoes. And, who can leave out the gyro with pita bread or souvlakia (kebobs) on a stick. Most meals begin with a country-style salad of tomatoes, onions, cucumbers, parsley, lettuce (when available), Greek olives and of course, topped with crumbled feta cheese, olive oil and squeezed lemon. Other delicacies include stewed or grilled octopus. Let us not forget also the famous Greek wines, beers, and Ouzo (anise flavored apertiff). As an aside, Greeks love to sing after they eat as a way of digesting their food.
As you can see, there is more to the so-called Mediterranean Diet than what is eaten. The whole culture revolves around a daily routine. Good eating is part of that daily routine. It is not only what you eat but how and when you eat. Remember the old Greek adage, “everything in moderation”. As my maternal grandfather George Iliopoulos used to say, “eat what you want - just don’t overdo it”. My own father could never stress enough the importance of having a daily routine. Eating meals at the same time every day. Going to bed and rising in the morning around the same time every day. Of course, every now and then the routine may be interrupted by other factors requiring us to change those times but, only for an interval. That brings us to the main point of this discussion, which is, to be healthy you have to be diciplined in your daily life. Eat right and regularly, sleep regularly, excercise regularly, relax and enjoy life regularly. Laugh, sing and be happy. Kali oreksi! Bon Apetite!
February 27th, 2010 at 5:50 am
You made some good points there. I did a search on the topic and found most people will agree with your blog.
April 14th, 2010 at 9:49 am
Every one on internet searches for quality content. Its very unfortunate with most of the websites published posts that are boring and out of context articles, just to show that new material is being published. Contrary to that immoral practice, this article is a well-written article.