3 Diets That Reduce the Risk of Chronic Disease

Eating healthy and maintaining the proper diet is just as important for preventing disease, as it is for losing weight. In fact, nutrition and health are closely related. The more you pay attention to what goes into your body, the less likely things will malfunction down the road. This can be a tough egg to crack, especially if you live in the United States.

The Standard American Diet (not surprisingly abbreviated as SAD) is high in everything that’s not good for you. That includes extra salt, added sugar, and saturated fats. A growing body of research has determined a link between overall eating patterns, health, and the risk of chronic disease. 

In this article, we’ll examine some of the top diets that have been known to reduce the risk of disease and discuss dietary guidelines that will keep you on the right track.

Chronic Disease is a Sobering Statistic

As long as people are eating the wrong foods, chronic disease will always win. The CDC’s statistics on chronic disease in America are disheartening (to say the least). It is the leading cause of death and disability in the nation and 70% of annual deaths are due to chronic disease.

These preventable conditions compromise the quality of life and add to the rising cost of healthcare. In fact, 75% of our healthcare dollars are devoted to chronic diseases. Other CDC stats include:

• 6 out of 10 Americans live with at least one chronic disease (like heart disease, stroke, cancer, or diabetes).
• More than half (51.8%) of adults have at least 1 of 10 selected diagnosed chronic conditions.
• 40 million Americans are limited in their usual activities due to one or more chronic diseases.

The good news is, we all have the power to prevent this! Making positive diet and lifestyle changes now will help reduce your risk later on down the road. Here are some of the top diets to consider when preventing disease:

Mediterranean Diet

People love the Mediterranean diet because it’s easy to follow and works really well. The diet doesn’t have a set calorie range or portion guidelines, which is why anyone can do it. Studies have shown that the Mediterranean diet beat low–fat diets for weight loss after one year and improved heart health. It’s a multi-faceted solution to fighting disease.

On the Mediterranean diet, you’ll be eating a lot of:

• Whole grains
• Fruits
• Vegetables
• Legumes
• Nuts and seeds
• Olive oil
• Some lean meats like fish

The whole grains in this diet contain a lot of vitamin B, iron, magnesium, and selenium. B vitamins are essential for your nervous system and converting fat into energy. Iron will help move more oxygen through your blood. Magnesium and selenium bring energy to your muscles and build stronger bones. 

Eating the Mediterranean diet also means you have very little room left over for processed foods. Your plate will be bursting with color, as traditional proteins (like beef or chicken) take a backseat. In this diet, the plants are the main event.

In a 2018 study of 25,000 women who closely followed the Mediterranean diet, 28% were found to have a lower risk of heart disease. That’s because the diet helps to lower inflammation, improve insulin function, and reduce body mass index (BMI). The evidence that the Mediterranean diet reduces disease has been strong, long, and consistent. 

Want to get started today? Check out these Mediterranean diet recipes.

DASH Diet

The DASH diet stands for Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension (DASH). It has been consistently ranked as one of the top diets in the world to prevent chronic disease. Rather than withholding foods, the DASH diet is focused on manageable dietary changes that are rooted in proven nutritional advice. In other words, this is probably the diet your doctor would recommend.

The DASH diet is a plan designed to lower your blood pressure. High blood pressure (hypertension) is a major contributing factor to heart disease and affects an estimated 50% of American adults. 

The DASH diet consists of:

• Whole grains
• Vegetables
• Fruits
• Nuts
• Low-fat dairy
• Lean meats

The DASH diet also sticks to sodium guidelines that reduce hypertension. However, even if your blood pressure is normal, this diet will keep your health on track. 

DASH is one of the most vetted diets out there. The National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute

(NHLBI) conducted three studies examining the health benefits of DASH. They found that the DASH diet consistently lowers blood pressure and LDL (bad cholesterol levels), as well as helps people lose weight.

Another report analyzed 12 separate studies of more than 500,000 participants. Researchers concluded that those who followed the DASH diet closely had a 12% lower risk of developing a stroke, compared to those who did not follow DASH.

Ready to try it out? Check out these DASH diet recipes.

Flexitarian Diet

The flexitarian diet is a plant-based eating plan that’s often called “semi-vegetarian.” Flexitarian is simply a mashup of the words “flexible” and “vegetarian.” The idea is that this diet is a more flexible approach to vegetarianism (even though you still eat meat). It’s a lot like the Mediterranean diet in which meat is not the primary focus of the meal.

The plan touts the basic principles of a plant-based diet, and advocates for significantly decreasing meat consumption. By doing so, you also increase the number of servings of fruits and vegetables. 

The Flexitarian diet has guidelines on how much meat should be consumed, with beginners opting to skip two days a week with no meat. In the other 5 days, your meat consumption should not surpass 26 ounces total. For reference, a card deck is about the size of a 3-ounce portion of meat. 

If the ounces confuse you, consider these simple guidelines for 21 meals a week:

• Beginner 6–8 meatless meals 
• Advanced 9–14 meatless meals  
• Expert 15 or more meatless meals  

In a review of 25 studies, the Flexitarian diet was shown to help with weight loss, reduce the risk of type 2 diabetes, and improve blood pressure. It’s a simple way for anyone to cut back on the calories and saturated fat in their diet, without having to do a complete menu overhaul. The flexibility of the diet also makes it much easier to maintain for the long term. 

Getting hungry? Try these Flexitarian diet recipes.

Basic Dietary Guidelines

The totality of your diet will ultimately form the components of an eating pattern, which can have an interactive and cumulative effect on your health. These patterns can be tailored to an individual’s personal preferences, enabling you to choose the diet that works best.

The Office of Disease Prevention and Health Promotion has teamed up with the USDA to offer some basic dietary guidelines:

1. Follow a healthy eating pattern with an appropriate calorie level throughout your life. All food and beverage choices matter. This helps to maintain healthy body weight and reduces the risk of chronic disease.
2. Focus on nutrients. Choose a variety of nutrient-dense foods from all food groups, within recommended amounts.
3. Limit added sugars and saturated fats. Avoid anything processed as much as possible. Consume foods low in sugar and sodium.
4. Make better choices. Shift to healthier foods and beverages whenever possible. Consider cultural and personal preferences to make this easier.
5. Support everyone eating healthy. Everyone has a role in helping to create and support healthy eating patterns from home to school and communities.

Remember not to limit yourself. A healthy eating pattern includes a variety of vegetables from all subgroups, like dark green, red, legumes, starches, and more. There’s no need to avoid fruits, grains, or oil as well. Lastly, consume less than 10% of your daily calories from added sugars or saturated fats.

Here’s Dessert

As society evolves, the good news is that humans are becoming more aware of just how much an unhealthy diet can affect the quality of life. Check out these positive CDC stats:

• From 2008 to 2018, 26% fewer secondary schools across states sold less nutritious snacks or beverages.  
• The Million Hearts initiative prevented an estimated 135,000 cardiac events from 2012 to 2016, averting $5.6 billion in medical costs. 
• The proportion of adults meeting the aerobic physical activity guideline increased from 44% in 2008 to 54% in 2018.

The general theme in all of these diets is reducing processed foods and meat consumption. 

Recent studies have concluded that people who closely adhered to plant-based diets had up to a 25% lower risk of dying from any cause compared with those who didn’t follow the eating pattern. So, you don’t have to give up meat completely, but considering fewer portions is good for your health.

Overall, the most important takeaway is to choose a diet that has staying power. There’s a reason why a diet is called a “Fad.” It’s here one day and gone the next. Improving your health takes time and commitment, but the rewards are ten-fold.

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