‘Green’ Mediterranean diet burns fat faster than just healthy eating: study

Following the “green” Mediterranean diet helps burn fat three times faster than a typical healthy diet, according to a new study.

Research published in the journal BMC Medicine found that eating a plant-based Mediterranean diet caused the body to burn a dangerous type of body fat three times faster than those following a generally “healthy” diet.

Those who consumed the diet for 18 months saw their visceral fat levels reduced by 14%, compared to a control group who followed a standard healthy diet and only saw their fat levels reduced by 4.5%. . And a conventional Med diet performed half as well as its meatless counterpart.

Visceral fat is the fat that surrounds the vital organs in the abdomen and is more likely than other fats to increase your risk of serious medical problems, including heart disease, Alzheimer’s disease and type 2 diabetes. type of fat is what usually gives someone a beer belly, but it’s also found in thin people.

Research suggests that visceral fat loss should be the goal of weight loss and more indicative of health than a person’s total weight or waist circumference.

A Mediterranean diet — high in fat and protein but low in carbs — is touted as an overall healthy diet and is becoming increasingly popular for its heart-healthy benefits.

Plant-based foods, such as whole grains, vegetables and legumes, are the mainstay of the diet, with olive oil being the main source of added fat, but the green Mediterranean diet puts more emphasis on emphasis on green vegetables.

The 18-month study, conducted by researchers at Ben-Gurion University of the Negev, recruited 294 participants with an average age of 51 and considered clinically obese. The researchers separated the participants into three random groups, guiding them through a “healthy” diet, a Mediterranean diet or a green Mediterranean diet.

People following the Green Mediterranean Diet have been instructed to forgo red meat and poultry and drink three to four cups of green tea and a duckweed (Wolffia globosa) shake daily – which is high in protein. , iron, B12, vitamins, minerals and polyphenols – replace meat consumption.

Both groups following the Mediterranean diets had calorie restrictions of 1,400 calories per day for women and 1,800 per day for men, and ate less than 40 grams of carbohydrates per day for the first two months, before being increased to 80 grams.

Those on an overall “healthy” diet were not given strict calorie counting.

All participants received 90-minute nutrition classes weekly for the first month, then once a month for the next five months, and were asked to do aerobics and strength training three to four times a week for 45 to 60 minutes.

Ultimately, the study found that while the Mediterranean and Green Mediterranean diets led participants to see similar weight loss and waist circumference, the Green Mediterranean diet doubled visceral fat loss. And visceral fat loss was tripled compared to the “healthy” diet.

It also concluded that higher dietary intake of green tea, nuts, and duckweed, along with reduced consumption of red meat, was significantly linked to greater visceral fat loss.