The Mediterranean Diet

Somerset Maugham says that “To eat well in England you should have breakfast three times a day”. I think that to live well anywhere in the world you should eat at least three times a day. Some of you may have thought of a Mediterranean diet, but when I talked about eating, the first thing I thought about is my region’s diet. And if I have to compare those to other diets, I would say that a typical diet from the south of Benin is equivalent to the Mediterranean Diet because although the nutritional values are lower in the Beninois diet, it is cheaper and easier to find than the Mediterranean diet in the southern region of Benin.

Body:

The Mediterranean Diet is rich in vegetables, fruit, legumes such as peas and beans and also rich in grains. It also contains moderate amounts of chicken and fish. There is little red meat. Most fat is unsaturated and comes from olive oil and nuts. Since a diet is what you eat and what you drink having a small amount of red wine has been shown to increase the health benefits. In combination with moderate exercise and not smoking, the Mediterranean Diet offers a scientifically researched, balanced, and health-promoting lifestyle choice. (HealthFitnessRevolution, 2013)

The Mediterranean Diet is a balanced diet full of a variety of foods and can be followed easily. Key characteristics of the Mediterranean diet include:

• One to two glasses of red wine per day for men and one glass of red wine per day for women.

• Daily consumption of lots of fresh fruits and vegetables.

• Whole grains used in breads, cereals, couscous and pastas.

• Weekly consumption of meats, such as poultry, eggs (0 to 4 eggs per week), lamb, veal, and fish and other seafood. Very little red meat is consumed using this diet.

• Nuts,...

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... on special occasions only and is therefore eaten from time to time. In contrast, my region’s diet is available in any market at any time. During some period, some of the ingredients are very affordable and easy to find. This allows the food to be cheaper and available to everybody.

The accessibility of the Mediterranean diet in the south of Benin is quite questionable. Expensive food is available but many people are not willing to sell food people eat just from time to time. So Mediterranean food is difficult to find and allow the region’s food to be sold almost everywhere.

Conclusion

Together with the accessibility of the food in the south of Benin and its affordability, my region’s diet is equal to the Mediterranean diet. The reason why it is not superior to the Mediterranean diet is that it does not contains enough nutrients to guarantee a long life expectancy.