The Mediterranean Diet:
What is it and why is it such a big deal?

Food, far beyond its biological function of sustaining and energising, is a fundamental part of the cultural identity of many groups, nations, and regions. Alongside language and religion, food traditions play a central role in the collective identity of various diasporas and indigenous communities around the world. In major cities such as New York, London, and Paris, supermarkets catering to diverse tastes and needs allow immigrant communities to connect with their ancestors and their homeland. 

One of the best known food traditions of the western world is the Mediterranean diet. Inscribed on UNESCO’s list of Intangible Cultural Heritage in 2013, it includes not just the food on the table but the preparation, cultivation, and community surrounding what is eaten in the seven countries included: Spain, Portugal, Italy, Greece, Cyprus, Croatia, and Morocco. The culture of sharing food and eating together (à la Tapas) has become one of the region’s most important cultural exports. The component foods of the diet vary widely from country to country, however, the common thread is high consumption of fruits, vegetables, nuts, seafood, and unsaturated fats such as olive oil. The diet goes beyond the food, though, into the “intangible” part of this list. It includes the various traditional processes of fishing, animal husbandry, and crop growing which have been passed on from one generation to the next as a cultural tradition and a way of life.

Spain’s reliance on the Mediterranean diet as a way of life, stretches far beyond the intangible. In The Complete Round-the-World Cookbook by Myra Waldo, published in 1954 and containing recipes provided by pan-American agents from around the world, Spanish cuisine is described as being “based upon certain principal ingredients: olives and olive oil; the flavorings of garlic, saffron, and paprika; seafood, rice, beans, chick-peas, and smoked sausages.” Despite the innovative cooking of chefs such as Ferran Adrià at El Bulli, and the approximately two hundred Michelin starred restaurants across Spain, for the average Spaniard, little has changed in the sixty-six years since this cookbook was published. Spain is the largest producer of olive oil in the world, producing approximately fifty percent of the world’s virgin olive oil (1.8 million tonnes annually); and increases in exports of other foodstuffs in recent years have contributed to Spain’s growing trade surplus since 2013 – a key driver of the country’s domestic economic growth.

What, then, is so special and different about the Mediterranean diet? It has an enormous impact on the health of those who stick to it. By 2040, Spain is predicted to overtake Japan as the country with the highest life expectancy in the world, according to a report from the Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation. Additionally, despite having less than half the GDP per capita of Germany ($23,000 vs $48,000), Portugal has a marginally higher life expectancy than its Northern European counterpart. The National Research Council in Spain suggests that a large part of this is as a result of the closer social relationships and more valued family connections which come as part and parcel of the Mediterranean diet. Eating together and preparing food together foments a deeper bond which in turn leads to a high quality of life. Live better and longer!

There are a number of lessons to take from life in these Mediterranean countries, but really, what it all comes down to is: eat more fish, drink some wine but not too much, and give your family and friends a call to invite them over for dinner tonight.

Freddie Tidswell is a fourth year student at the University of Edinburgh studying French and Spanish.