!! WHOLE MILK, BUTTER, EGGS, not bad for you. https://video.search.yahoo.com/sear...=cb2def547be58a85f628a190b495e36d&action=view
That is part of it, but the Mediterranean diet research includes city folks in those regions too. Besides more often eating fresh local foods they don't eat snack foods.Even the Mediterranean diet that people toute so highly forgets that half the reason it works so well is that people in Italy, Greece, etc. who live a long life are generally living in small villages and getting substantially more exercise than Americans. Anyone who has spent time in the area, like I have, soon recognizes that the locals walk everywhere and constantly walking up the steep streets of an average Italian or Greek rural town is very strenuous work. Gee, do they take that into account?? I'm going to pour myself another glass of red wine.
Now if they would just come out with that one that says cigarettes extend your life...
It may be better to avoid falling.
Yes, and the foundation is grains and processed food. That is how I was educated by good ole board of education.
You can easily pick out the American tourists by their size and their clothing.
I have been to Europe many times and have many of the same observations.Thought I would update this thread since I have just returned from another 2 weeks in Italy. I was thinking about this thread - believe it or not - as we drove a few thousand kms. around rural Italy plus spent 2 days in Rome. What struck me upon landing in Rome and especially upon returning to Toronto was the enormous difference in weight between the typical Italian and the typical North American. Almost all Italians we saw are slender. Yes, there are a few moderately hefty ones, but that was rare. What struck me even more was that Italians wear very tight fitting pants. Italians have always been very fashion conscious and skin tight pants (especially leather) on women greatly distracted me from viewing the sights of Rome.
Most North Americans misunderstand the Mediterranean diet. It's not just better quality, less processed food, but also far less of all food. The portion sizes are significantly smaller, with the emphasis on fresh, natural tastes and far less use of salt & spices than we are accustomed to. You almost never see french fries or hamburgers on a menu and McDonalds puts the emphasis on McCafe not burgers. Meat portions in particular are half or less than we see in American restaurants.
The average Italian walks a lot more than we do. Even in large cities, walking briskly to/from cars or transit is normal. At home, I pass almost everyone when walking. In Italy, I had to step up my pace to be average. Actually, they do everything faster especially driving. It's the same phenomena we notice when going the the Caribbean, where everything slows down significantly. In Italy, the pace speeds up compared to our normal. It's also not just walking but a ton of steps and steep inclines. Rome was built on hills, Venice is full of bridges, rural towns are almost always on the tops of mountains and everywhere you go, you're climbing.
So IMHO, it's all about smaller portions, natural ingredients and a lot more exercise if you want a longer, more healthy life.
It is in some countries but if you stay away from the tourist areas, your cost will go down 50%. We only had one meal that was higher in price than dining out locally. The rest were all much cheaper. One of our best meals was 40 Euros (US$43.) which was 5 courses, a litre of excellent 2009 wine, including all taxes and service (tip). Where can you dine at a great restaurant in the US for $43. for 2 people? Part of that answer is the minimal use of meat, which is the most expensive cost in the menu. We splurged on a platter of apps - actually 7 dishes of meat & cheese - and without that, our bill would have been 28 Euros. Remove the wine and tiramisu it would be 14. Now you're down to McD's prices.
