Julieanna Hever - The Vegiterranean Diet

Praise for The Vegiterranean Diet

Were all looking for sustainable solutions to long-term health. But diet can be complicated and burdensome. Julieanna Hever gets to the delicious heart of why the Mediterranean lifestyle promotes wellness and longevity. An accessible, informing primer on the building blocks of optimal health and robust with mouth-watering plant-based recipes, this is a book you will cherish and rely upon for years to come.

RICH ROLL, plant-based athlete and bestselling author of Finding Ultra

Julieanna takes us on a Mediterranean journey filled with important nutritional information, debunking common food myths and providing us with a road map to a healthy lifestyle using her Vegiterranean food pyramid. This book has both educated and inspired me to live a plant-based, whole foods Vegiterranean lifestyle.

MIKE ZIGOMANIS, plant-based professional hockey player

A must-read for anyone interested in a sustainable, healthy life! The Vegiterranean Diet brings the history and science of nutrition from antiquity into the future, offering winning arguments for a plant-based diet. Julieanna offers a very clear plan to help us change our health and change the world. Im in!

LISA BLOOM, attorney and New York Times bestselling author of Think: Straight Talk for Women to Stay Smart in a Dumbed-Down World

This book brings a practical and scientific perspective to the famously romantic Mediterranean diet. Julieanna is entertaining and informative as she shares everything you need to get started, from the diets historical background, nutritional science, and impeccable health outcomes to an abundance of delicious plant-based recipes!

DEREK TRESIZE, CPT, WNBF Pro Bodybuilder

A fascinating exploration into both the past and present using food and science as the vehicle, The Vegiterranean Diet infuses nutrition with compassion and wisdom. Julieanna Hever provides a solid and compelling thesis for why the healthiest diet is one that is plant-based, and offers an easy, delicious, and practical plan to transform your health. Viva Vegano!

COLLEEN PATRICK-GOUDREAU, bestselling author of six books, including The 30-Day Vegan Challenge and host of Food for Thought

The Vegiterranean Diet is bursting with timely, thoughtful information. Julieanna Hever takes the Mediterranean diet to a whole new level. This book is an absolute must read for anyone interested in making truly conscious food choices, and amazingly delicious Vegiterranean food!

BRENDA DAVIS RD, coauthor of Becoming Vegan: Comprehensive and Express Editions

The Vegiterranean Diet is wise, clear, complete, practical, and it celebrates real food that is really delicious. Julieanna Hever is adept at translating science into understandable terms, and with a great deal of heart, shes brought my Italian heritage and my vegan proclivities into perfect alignment.

VICTORIA MORAN, author of Main Street Vegan and director, Main Street Vegan Academy

Julieanna Hever has knocked it out of the park with this grand slam of a book, as much a lifestyle plan as a diet alone. The first half is the most comprehensive review of why the Mediterranean basin is so attractive and associated with superior health. If every medical student read this, the health of the Western world would leap ahead in a few weeks. The recipes and kitchen skills are thorough and I cannot wait to try them.

JOEL KAHN MD, FACC, Clinical Professor of Medicine, Wayne State University SOM, author of The Whole Heart Solution

In The Vegiterranean Diet, Julieanna Hever revolutionizes the Mediterranean diet with plant-based prowess. Backed by research, Julieannas program serves up expert advice, meal plans, and irresistible, authentic recipes. Yet its her unparalleled passion that truly inspires, through every page. Let Julieanna guide you to abundant health...the Vegiterranean way!

DREENA BURTON, author of Plant-Powered Families and host of plantpoweredkitchen.com

The Vegiterranean Diet is an inspiring example of take the best and leave the rest. Grounded in the beauty of tradition, Julieanna Hever offers a delicious, whole-food version of Mediterranean cuisine and nutrition.

MICAELA KARLSEN, MSPH, Founder of PlantBasedResearch.org

The Vegiterranean Diet is an approachable, yet science-based, read that further elevates our understanding of the Mediterranean Diet and the importance of whole-food, plant-based eating.

ANDY BELLATTI, MS, RD, Strategic Director, Dietitians For Professional Integrity

Copyright 2014 by Julieanna Hever

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise, without the prior written permission of the publisher.

Printed in the United States of America.

For information, address Da Capo Press, 44 Farnsworth Street, 3rd Floor, Boston, MA 02210.

Set in 11.25 point Adobe Caslon Pro by Marcovaldo Productions, Inc., for the Perseus Books Group

Cataloging-in-Publication data for this book is available from the Library of Congress.

First Da Capo Press edition 2014

ISBN: 978-0-7382-1790-1 (e-book)

Published by Da Capo Press

A Member of the Perseus Books Group

www.dacapopress.com

Da Capo Press books are available at special discounts for bulk purchases in the U.S. by corporations, institutions, and other organizations. For more information, please contact the Special Markets Department at the Perseus Books Group, 2300 Chestnut Street, Suite 200, Philadelphia, PA, 19103, or call (800) 810-4145, ext. 5000, or e-mail .

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Contents

The Mediterranean Diet is on everyones mind these days. More people than ever are looking to the coasts of France, Italy, Greece, and Lebanon, not just for romantic images of these beautiful lands, but for the delicious tastes and good health that come from their culinary traditions. And they are right. From the aromas of the kitchen and the flavors on the dinner table come an abundance of good health. Mediterranean diets are good for you.

But that M-word means different things to different people. For some it means a glass of wine. For someone else, it means olive oil. For others, it might mean favoring fish over beef. But what actually gets the credit for the healthfulness of the diets of Mediterranean countries? In 2009, a team of researchers tackled exactly that question. In the European Prospective Investigation into Cancer and Nutrition (EPIC) study, the research team examined 23,349 men and women living in Greece and tracked their health over an 8-year period. It turned out that the factors associated with health and longevity were: boosting vegetables, fruits, and nuts; avoiding meat; keeping alcohol intake moderate; minimizing animal fats in comparison with olive oil; andperhaps surprisinglyavoiding fish and shellfish.