What we eat affects our weight, our health and our lifespan. Traditional Mediterranean cuisine is considered particularly healthy, and is even said to prevent heart disease, cancer, and the aging process of the brain. It has long been known that our diet has a decisive influence on our health. Mediterranean cuisine is considered exemplary — based primarily on plant-based ingredients such as vegetables, whole grains, nuts, legumes, and fruit. But how exactly do these foods affect our bodily functions? The documentary explores this question and visits research centers in Greece, Cyprus, Italy, France, Spain, and the US. There, renowned nutrition experts present the latest scientific findings. They show how certain foods, their combinations, and our lifestyle can reduce the risk of cardiovascular disease, cancer, obesity, and age-related changes in the brain — and how the Mediterranean diet can also contribute to climate protection. #documentary #dwdocumentary #dwdocs ______ DW Documentary gives you knowledge beyond the headlines. Watch top documentaries from German broadcasters and international production companies. Meet intriguing people, travel to distant lands, get a look behind the complexities of daily life and build a deeper understanding of current affairs and global events. Subscribe and explore the world around you with DW Documentary. Subscribe to: ⮞ DW Documentary (English): https://www.youtube.com/@DWDocumentary ⮞ DW Documental (Spanish): https://www.youtube.com/@DWDocumental ⮞ DW Documentary وثائقية دي دبليو (Arabic): https://www.youtube.com/@dwdocarabia ⮞ DW Documentary हिन्दी (Hindi): https://www.youtube.com/@dwdochindi ⮞ DW Dokumenter (Indonesian): https://www.youtube.com/@DWDokumenter ⮞ DW Doku (German): https://www.youtube.com/@dwdoku For more visit: http://www.dw.com/en/tv/docfilm/s-3610 Follow DW Documentary on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/dwdocumentary/ Follow DW Documental on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/dwdocumental We kindly ask viewers to read and stick to the DW netiquette policy on our channel: https://p.dw.com/p/MF1G
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Brought up in Portugal, the Med diet was exactly what we ate. However, living in the UK I cannot afford much of what I'd like, figs, lemons melon, all are a luxury here. I prioritize buying olive oil, eggs, frozen cod, sardines(tinned). But on the whole struggle to make Med diet food regularly. It all boils down to finances. With the cost of living crisis, families struggle to afford much healthy food, ie a variety of vegetables and fruits.
I wish a Happy New Year to all the DW Documentary staff, and hope to keep watching and learning a lot from your amazing documentaries. Thank you ! See you all in 2026 🥳
Just the act of removing processed foods alone is one of the healthiest things you can do.
Food is one big part of the equation. But just as much as important is physical activity, stress, financial worries, and other similar lifestyle components. 3:30
Highly processed and added sugar rich food should be highly taxed meanwhile medically proven healthy food should have only a low level tax.
I found out that DW Documentary releases a new documentary every day. I think they have hundreds of documentaries stored on their hard drives. Lol.
My son has sickle cell disease and right now am cooking red kidney beans with rice. We hardly eat out or fast food. I enjoy cooking my own food in my kitchen and my kids enjoy home cooked meals 😊
Scientific community itself is very polarising regarding dietary habits, diets etc. For example, it is very confusing when some sources say that fruits should be avoided because of glucose and here they say fruits are beneficial. The same happens about red meat. I am from Crete myself and I know first hand the "Mediterranean" diet described in this DW documentary. Long story short, my conclusion is that things are way simpler -- eat local, eat seasonal, eat fresh, avoid processed
This the the best documentary I’ve seen on the Mediterranean Diet. Very comprehensive. Thank you so much. ❤️
“Food can be the slowest poison or the gentlest medicine”
We all wish for a healthy diet that can help us live longer.
An old program - unfortunately, in 2025, obesity has grown disproportionately, also in South Africa where I live. The Mediterranean diet works for people living in Mediterranean countries who are much more active and eat smaller portions. Today, in much of the Western world, portions are huge, often containing more sauces and condiments than the food itself. Add to that the amount of sugary drinks, lots of sugary snacks and high consumption of fast food. A small portion of lean meat is much more healthy than the fatty foods produced by the fast food industry. You cannot eat for 3 or more people at any given time and be inactive, no matter how healthy the food.
People are practicing fasting by Orthodox Church. That’s the part which doctors and scientists are overlooking
It's not just about the food they eat, it's more about what u don't eat
You guys have no idea, thats how i grew up too in greece. With money or without the food was always thought out and with respect to the resources.
Physical activity and ovoid financial worries😢😢😢
I'm from Québec in Canada. Here life expectancy is just as high as in Mediterranean countries and a lot of people reach the late 90s and are still in super shape for their age. But here, the Mediterranean diet wasn't possible because of the climate that we have. People's diet was mostly composed of bread, root vegetables, potatoes, beans, beef (including dairy products) and a little fish. In summer there were however a higher variety of fruits and vegetables. I think what matters is to have a diverse diet and to avoid excess salt, excess sugar and excess saturated fats. You don't "need" to eat olive oil or wathever is part of the Mediterranean diet to be healthy, as long as what you eat contains all the nutrients required for our body to remain healthy.
Thank you so much for such a useful documentary😍😍😍. My doctore recommended me this diet, so this documentary helped me to understand the importance of it and the reason why should i follow it. Thank you to the doctors and volunteers as well. ❣❣❣
What a beautifully produced, well resourced and edited piece of information. Was throughly engaged from beginning to end. Keep up the awesome work, we need informative content like these nowadays
My Heartiest wishes for Happy New year🎄🎄🎄🎄⭐️💫🌟💫⭐️ 2026 to all DW Staffs keep doing the great job 💐💐💐💐🌷🌷🌷🌷❤🎉