Video transcript
Is it possible that bad diets kill more people than cigarettes?
According to the Global Burden of Disease study the answer is YES – poor diet maybe responsible for more deaths than any other risk factor in the world.
Annually:
- Tobacco is associated with 8M deaths
- High blood pressure is linked to 10.4M deaths
- While unhealthy diets are responsible for 11M deaths.
Despite decades of advice from nutritional experts that we must cut back on sodium, sugar & fat, it seems the warnings have gone unheeded, leading experts to conclude that the discussion must shift from what people SHOULDN’T EAT to what people SHOULD eat.
According to the report the best performing countries i.e. with the lowest rate of diet-related deaths were:
- Israel
- France
- Spain
- Japan.
The Global Burden of Disease study found that eating and drinking better could prevent 1 in 5 deaths globally and countries that have a mainly Mediterranean diet seem to perform the best.
The Mediterranean diet emphasises:
- Vegetables
- Fruits
- Nuts & seeds
- Legumes
- Whole grains & cereals
- Olive or canola oil
- Seafood (oily fish) 2x week
- Eat smaller portions of meat (beef, lamb, pork, chicken) no more than 1x week
- Eggs, cheese & yoghurt in moderation
- Enjoy meals with family and friends
- Exercise daily.
The Mediterranean diet has been shown to encourage weight loss, reduce the risk of heart attacks, strokes, cancer, & type 2 diabetes. So let’s change the discussion about unhealthy diets to the promotion of healthy diets.
