Everyone who comes to this site often, from all over the planet, has a love of ethnic foods. You are all like me, enjoying tasting the foods of many different cultures. Recently, one of the readers posed the question, “Which culture has the healthiest ethnic food of all?”

So I did some research. I wanted to know, myself. I had a hunch it would probably be one of the Asian cuisines. And, while lots of Asian cultures do have cuisines that rank very high on the list of “Healthiest Ethnic Food”, well …

I was wrong.

Thailand, Vietnam, and Japan are on most Top Ten lists I found, often all three were in the Top Five. But guess which region, out of all the cultures on Earth, actually does have the healthiest diet of all?

Mediterranean Cuisine has the Healthiest Ethnic Food Anywhere in the World.

Healthiest Ethnic Food

While not listed #1 on all lists – and these are not just any lists from someone’s personal blog, I’m talking credible sources like Harvard University Research – Mediterranean cuisine is by far the predominantly favored one.

The countries surrounding the Mediterranean Sea have cuisines that include a steady diet of the best foods for good health, longevity, decreased risk of cancer, heart disease and stroke, high blood pressure, and diabetes.

Countries like Spain, Italy, Israel, Lebanon, Tunisia, Greece, Cyprus, etc., are inhabited by people who’s diets promote excellent health.

A well balanced combination of fresh vegetables and fruits, dark leafy greens, raw and roasted nuts, grains and beans, and lots of wild caught (not farm-raised) fish and seafoods makes for the healthiest ethnic food of all. And, the use of olive oil as the staple frying agent is by far the healthiest.

Italy, for instance, boasts a centenarian (people who live to be 100 years old) rate of about 30 per 100,000 people. That’s not the highest in the world (Japan takes that honor) but, across the board, the Mediterranean region boasts with the most countries with very high percentages of centenarians over any other region of its size.

This diet is high in the kind of fats that are healthy for you, too. This is good for two reasons. One, your body needs some fat intake, and not just any fats. You want Monounsaturated fats and polyunsaturated fats, which are in abundance in Mediterranean meals. And two, because you are taking in fats, you get that “full” feeling sooner and it lasts longer – so you tend to eat less. Hence, the Mediterranean style of eating is also advantageous for keeping control of your weight.

Many dieticians will recommend a Mediterranean style of eating for weight loss.

Here are a few things you can do, to adjust whatever diet you currently have into a healthier, more “Mediterranean” eating regimen:

• Reduce “bad fats” intake by switching from whole milk to 2%, 1%, or skim milk. Or, and this is even better, abandon cow’s milk altogether. Switch to Almond milk, which is much healthier for you and has the type of fats your body can use to its advantage. Plus, if you ask me, it flat out tastes better.
• Cut down on red meats, and eat fish or other seafoods at least twice a week, in place of that juicy, fatty steak, roast or hamburger.
• Do not eat refined, white breads and pastas. Choose whole grain breads and pastas.
• Base your meals on fresh fruits, vegetables, brown rice and other healthy grains like bulgar and quinoa, nuts, and legumes (dried peas, beans, lentils), seed, herbs and spices.
• When you get hungry for a snack? Lay off the potato chips, ice cream, french fries and et cetera. Instead, munch on some fresh fruits or raw vegetables, or some raw or roasted (but not salted) nuts.
• Fry, sauté, and cook with olive oil instead of butter, lard, and other oils. Olive oil is by far the healthiest of all other options for you.
  

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  So there you have what I hope is a helpful and compelling argument for switching to a diet that is more like the way the people in the Mediterranean Sea region eat. Surely, you do not have to give up your love of ethnic foods, and indulging in excessively high calorie, “fun foods” now and then is good for the soul.

  Just keep in mind a few simple things as mentioned above, and by and large adhere to the basic principles of what makes the Mediterranean way of eating the Healthiest Ethnic Food on Earth