Good Lifestyle

The Mediterranean regime has become the Holy Grail of a healthy diet. Research shows that it can improve cognitive health and memory, Reduce the risk of prostate cancer , reduce the risk of heart attack and blow , help with weight loss , prevent macular degeneration , and much more. But a recent interest in the Nordic regime could eliminate the Mediterranean regime from its pedestal.

Trista Best , RD, dietitian recorded at Balance an supplements , tell Best life That this food plan is based on the cultures of those of the Nordic countries of Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Norway and Sweden. It is very similar to the Mediterranean diet, but promotes some key differences. And it has been shown to change the situation for weight loss and heart health.

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What is the Nordic regime?

Also known as the Scandinavian diet, the Nordic diet focuses on seasonal and unprocessed foods. He first occurred as an official food diet in 2012 when Cambridge University Press Results of the published study which described the directives for a new Nordic regime. It included the following three principles:

• More calories in plant foods and less meat
• More sea and lakes
• More foods in the wild countryside

More specifically, registered dietitian Dawn Menning , RD, a specialist certified in care and education with diabetes with Nut , lists the following foods as the main components of the Nordic diet:

• Vegetables (dark green leafy vegetables, fresh peas and green vegetables, cabbage, onions or root vegetables)
• Legumes (beans, lenses or dry beans)
• Fruits and berries (blueberry, baking, apple, pear, prune)
• Nuts and seeds (sunflower seeds, nuts, sesame seeds or chestnuts)
• Whole grains (oatmeal, muesli, barley flour, rye bread or whole grain pasta)
• Fish and seafood (salmon, herring, Haddock, pike, mackerel, dart, catfish or tuna)
• Low fat dairy products (cheese, butter, fermented milk or yogurt)
• Vegetable oil fat (rapeseed)

"The Nordic diet is a diet for the plant and rich in fiber and seafood which may seem similar to the Mediterranean diet and which has often been compared to it," explains Menning. “The main differences are the type of oil; Instead of olive oil, rapeseed oil (canola) is underlined, and the Nordic diet includes lower fat dairy products while the Mediterranean diet is more complete. ”

Like the Mediterranean diet, the Nordic diet very little includes eggs and poultry, and it advises to eat red meat or transformed meat.

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What are the health benefits of the Nordic diet?

"The advantages of the Nordic diet come mainly from the high fiber and antioxidant content of these foods," said the best. "It is also considerably lower in foods such as dairy products, added sugar and saturated fat. This consumption model is a contribution to the longer life expectancy of the Nordic people."

However, she notes that "universal health care, solid social security nets" and the emphasis on outdoor activities are contributory factors.

Weight loss and anti-inflammatory properties

By avoiding processed foods, saturated fats, meat rich in cholesterol and added sugars, following the Nordic diet can naturally help you lose weight.

But it can also reduce inflammation, which has proven to contribute to weight gain and to many chronic diseases. In fact, a 2015 study published in The American Journal of Clinical Nutrition found that a healthy Nordic diet reduced the expression of inflammatory genes in the abdominal subcutaneous adipose tissue.

Reduce cholesterol and blood sugar

Regardless of weight loss, the Nordic diet can help reduce cholesterol and blood sugar, according to a study in 2022 published in the journal Clinical nutrition .

"The group that had followed the Nordic regime for six months has become significantly healthier, with a lower cholesterol level, lower global levels of saturated fat and unsaturated in blood, and better regulation of glucose, compared to the control group," said the study author Lars ove dragged , A researcher and section head in the department of nutrition, exercise and sports at the University of Copenhagen.

He and his team have hypothesized that health benefits are due to unsaturated fatty acids in the Nordic diet, explains a press release .

At this point, Annemarie Braun , Dr Med, gynecologist and principal doctor at Praevivo Med In Germany, tells Best life that the Nordic regime is exceptionally rich in omega-3, 6 and 9 fats of fatty fish. These are also in linen seeds, as well as in sunflower and rapeseed oils.

Improvement of intestinal health

"Fermented dairy products, such as Skyr and Kefir, offer beneficial probiotics for intestinal health, which in turn supports hormonal balance," explains Braun.

Kefir has even been called a superfood for its varied concentration of healthy intestinal bacteria, which is more abundant than in ordinary yogurt.

"For example, studies have shown that Kéfir consumption can alleviate symptoms of Irritable colon syndrome , ulcers caused by H. pylori infection and other chronic gastrointestinal problems, " Best life previously reported.

Lower blood pressure

Yet another study, this published in the Journal of Internal Medicine , has found evidence that following a Nordic diet improves cardiovascular health because it "improves blood lipid profile and insulin sensitivity and reduces blood pressure to clinically relevant levels".

For all these reasons, a 2023 Scientific examination concluded that the "Nordic diet seems to be beneficial for cardiovascular health".