You’ve undoubtedly heard that the Mediterranean diet is one of the healthiest on the planet—and that’s true, given its association with various health benefits and even greater longevity. These perks and the fact that it’s been so well studied are what make it so trusted. But many people don’t realize that the Mediterranean diet isn’t a plan with strict criteria.

你肯定听说过地中海饮食是地球上最健康的饮食之一——确实如此，因为它与各种健康益处甚至更长的寿命有关。正是这些优点以及它已被深入研究的事实，使其备受信任。但许多人没有意识到，地中海饮食并非一套有严格标准的计划。

“The Mediterranean diet is inherently flexitarian—you can adopt the fundamental principles and apply them in a context that works for you or for any condition that has a dietary connection,” says David L. Katz, a preventive medicine specialist, past president of the American College of Lifestyle Medicine, and co-author of How to Eat. “By tweaking the basic themes, you’re taking good care of you, which means taking good care of all the parts of you.”

预防医学专家、美国生活方式医学学会前任主席、《如何饮食》一书的合著者大卫·L·卡茨（David L. Katz）表示：“地中海饮食本质上具有很大的灵活性——你可以采纳其基本原则，并将其应用于适合你自身情况或任何与饮食相关的健康状况的背景中。”他还说：“通过微调这些基本主题，你就能很好地照顾自己，这意味着照顾好你身心的各个方面。”

The core principles of the Mediterranean diet emphasize lots of vegetables, fruits, nuts, legumes (including beans), healthy fats, whole grains, and herbs and spices to add flavor. It also includes moderate amounts of fish, seafood, poultry, and eggs. By contrast, saturated fats, red meats, fried foods, ultra-processed foods, sweets, and simple carbs should be limited.

地中海饮食的核心原则强调多吃蔬菜、水果、坚果、豆类（包括各种豆子）、健康脂肪、全谷物，并使用香草和香料来增添风味。它还包括适量的鱼、海鲜、禽肉和鸡蛋。相比之下，饱和脂肪、红肉、油炸食品、超加工食品、甜食和简单碳水化合物则应受到限制。

Scientists are exploring how you can make simple tweaks to this core plan to address specific health concerns, including hypertension, chronic pain, cardiovascular health, and others.

科学家们正在探索，如何通过对这个核心计划进行简单的调整，来解决特定的健康问题，包括高血压、慢性疼痛、心血管健康等。

What makes the Mediterranean diet so beneficial for a wide range of health conditions are the anti-inflammatory, antioxidant-rich foods it incorporates, Katz says. “Inflammation is considered the common denominator in every major disease.”

凯茨表示，地中海饮食之所以对多种健康状况如此有益，是因为它包含了富含抗炎和抗氧化成分的食物。“炎症被认为是所有主要疾病的共同诱因。”

The possibilities for benefitting from the diet are limitless. Here are some science-backed hacks for how to use the core principles of the Mediterranean diet to suit your own needs.

这种饮食方式能带来的益处是无穷无尽的。以下是一些有科学依据的小窍门，教你如何运用地中海饮食的核心原则来满足你自身的需要。

HYPERTENSION

高血压

The fruit-and-veggie-rich, low-sodium DASH eating plan (which is short for Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension) is proven for its ability to control hypertension, or high blood pressure. However, you can get similar benefits with the Mediterranean diet if you reduce your sodium intake and emphasize foods that are high in potassium, magnesium, and calcium, Katz says. These include nuts, seeds, beans, leafy greens, and dairy products.

富含水果蔬菜、低钠的DASH饮食计划（DASH是“控制高血压膳食方法”的缩写），已被证实能够控制高血压。然而，凯茨表示，如果你减少钠的摄入量，并多吃富含钾、镁和钙的食物，地中海饮食也能带来类似的好处。这些食物包括坚果、种子、豆类、绿叶蔬菜和奶制品。

Good strategies for reducing sodium intake include choosing low-sodium canned beans and tomatoes and rinsing them well before using them, says Sara Baer-Sinnott, president of Oldways, a nonprofit organization that promotes healthy eating based on cultural food traditions.

Oldways 组织（一个基于文化饮食传统推广健康饮食的非营利组织）的主席莎拉·贝尔-辛诺特（Sara Baer-Sinnott）表示，降低钠摄入量的好方法包括选择低钠罐装豆类和番茄，并在使用前将它们彻底冲洗干净。

BRAIN HEALTH

大脑健康

The MIND diet (a.k.a., the Mediterranean-DASH Intervention for Neurodegenerative Delay) is a spin on the Mediterranean diet that was created explicitly for the purpose of protecting brain health and reducing the risk of developing Alzheimer’s. This diet emphasizes leafy greens and berries that have strong antioxidant and anti-inflammatory effects, and it has been shown to slow cognitive decline.

MIND饮食（又称“地中海-DASH饮食神经退行性疾病延迟干预”）是地中海饮食的一种变体，专门为保护大脑健康和降低罹患阿尔茨海默病（俗称老年痴呆症）的风险而设计。这种饮食强调多摄入绿叶蔬菜和浆果，它们具有强大的抗氧化和抗炎作用，并且已被证明可以减缓认知能力下降。

But it’s not the only way to go. A modified Mediterranean-ketogenic diet—consisting of 5 to 10 percent carbohydrates, 60 to 65 percent fat, and 30 percent protein—has been investigated to prevent or treat early Alzheimer’s disease. This approach is associated with beneficial changes in lipids that are linked to biomarkers of Alzheimer’s disease.

但这并非唯一的方法。一种改良的地中海生酮饮食——其构成是5%到10%的碳水化合物、60%到65%的脂肪和30%的蛋白质——已被研究用于预防或治疗早期阿尔茨海默病（俗称老年痴呆症）。这种方法与脂质（血脂）的有益变化有关，这些变化又与阿尔茨海默病的生物标志物相关联。

CHRONIC PAIN CONDITIONS

慢性疼痛

In a study in a 2024 issue of the journal Pain and Therapy, researchers had people with fibromyalgia—a disorder that affects muscles, soft tissues, and the nervous system's processing of pain—follow a general balanced diet (with a reduction in calorie intake) or a personalized form of the Mediterranean diet that eliminated dairy products and eggs. (In some instances, these foods can increase low-grade inflammation.) After eight weeks, those who adhered closely to the modified Mediterranean diet experienced reductions in pain, fatigue, depression, and anxiety.

在2024年《疼痛与治疗》期刊上发表的一项研究中，研究人员让患有纤维肌痛症（这是一种影响肌肉、软组织和神经系统对疼痛处理的疾病）的人，要么遵循一种普遍的均衡饮食（并减少卡路里摄入），要么遵循一种个性化的地中海饮食，该饮食排除了乳制品和鸡蛋。（在某些情况下，这些食物可能会加剧轻度炎症。）八周后，那些严格遵循改良版地中海饮食的人，疼痛、疲劳、抑郁和焦虑都有所减轻。

When it comes to rheumatoid arthritis, people may benefit from modifying the Mediterranean diet to include even more fatty fish (like anchovies, salmon, herring, sardines, mackerel, and tuna) and other foods that are rich in anti-inflammatory omega-3 fatty acids (like flaxseeds, chia seeds, and walnuts), says Joan Salge Blake, a dietitian and clinical professor of nutrition at Boston University and host of the nutrition and health podcast Spot On!

谈到类风湿性关节炎，波士顿大学的注册营养师兼临床营养学教授、营养与健康播客《Spot On!》的主持人琼·萨尔吉·布莱克（Joan Salge Blake）表示，人们可以从调整地中海饮食中获益，即在饮食中加入更多脂肪鱼（如凤尾鱼、三文鱼、鲱鱼、沙丁鱼、鲭鱼和金枪鱼），以及其他富含抗炎欧米伽-3脂肪酸的食物（如亚麻籽、奇亚籽和核桃）。

Research has further found that a higher consumption of oily fish and omega-3 fatty acids is associated with a reduction in pain incidence and pain worsening among older adults over the course of five years.

研究进一步发现，在五年期间，老年人摄入更多多脂鱼和欧米茄-3脂肪酸（一种健康的脂肪），能降低疼痛的发生率，并减轻疼痛恶化的程度。

WEIGHT MANAGEMENT

体重管理

The Mediterranean diet has been shown to help with weight management. “There’s only so much real estate on the plate so if half the plate is vegetables, that will crowd out other foods, which may cut calories without cutting the volume of food,” says Salge Blake.

地中海饮食已被证明有助于体重管理。Salge Blake 说：“盘子里的空间是有限的，所以如果盘子里有一半是蔬菜，就会挤占其他食物的空间，这可以在不减少食物总量的情况下，减少卡路里的摄入。”

Tweaking the diet can amp up those perks. A study in a 2022 issue of BMC Medicine found that following a “green Mediterranean diet” with twice the dietary polyphenols (thanks to more green tea, leafy greens, walnuts, and fiber) and less red meat led to greater loss of visceral fat in people with abdominal obesity after 18 months.

调整这种饮食方式可以增强其益处。《BMC医学》杂志2022年发表的一项研究发现，遵循一种“绿色地中海饮食”，这种饮食含有两倍的膳食多酚（这得益于更多的绿茶、绿叶蔬菜、核桃和纤维）并减少红肉摄入，能在18个月后使腹部肥胖者减掉更多的内脏脂肪。

CARDIOVASCULAR HEALTH

心血管健康

The anti-inflammatory properties of the Mediterranean diet are also helpful for your heart health because chronic inflammation is a significant contributor to heart disease. And you don’t have to stick to traditional Mediterranean foods to get those benefits. Recently, researchers created an Indian-adapted anti-inflammatory Mediterranean diet—with ingredients like split peas, basmati rice, mustard oil, and turmeric—for people with coronary artery disease, a leading cause of death in India.

地中海饮食的抗炎特性对心脏健康也有益，因为慢性炎症是导致心脏病的一个重要因素。而且，你不必非得坚持传统的地中海食物才能获得这些益处。最近，研究人员为印度冠心病患者（冠心病是印度主要的致死原因）创建了一种适应印度口味的抗炎地中海饮食，其食材包括豌豆、印度香米、芥末油和姜黄。

You can make similar swaps in other culinary traditions, like with the Puerto Rican Optimized Mediterranean-like Diet, which aims to improve cardiometabolic health by emphasizing consumption of beans (such as the black, pinto, and kidney varieties), root vegetables, fruits (like passion fruit, mango, and pineapple), whole grains, healthy fats, and low-fat dairy foods, and limiting consumption of red meat.

你也可以在其他烹饪传统中进行类似的替换，例如“波多黎各优化地中海式饮食法”（Puerto Rican Optimized Mediterranean-like Diet），它旨在通过强调摄入豆类（如黑豆、斑豆和芸豆）、根茎类蔬菜、水果（如百香果、芒果和菠萝）、全谷物、健康脂肪和低脂乳制品，并限制红肉的摄入，来改善心血管代谢健康。

TYPE 2 DIABETES

2型糖尿病

A 2021 review of the research suggests that adhering to the Mediterranean diet can have a positive effect on people with type 2 diabetes, largely by improving blood sugar control and insulin sensitivity.

2021年的一项研究综述表明，坚持地中海饮食对2型糖尿病患者有积极作用，这主要通过改善血糖控制和提高胰岛素敏感性来实现。

If you have diabetes, dietitians recommend a few particular tweaks: You may benefit from having smaller, more frequent meals throughout the day and having fruit with a source of protein to stabilize blood sugar, says Julia Zumpano, a registered dietitian with the Center for Human Nutrition at the Cleveland Clinic. This could mean Greek yogurt or cottage cheese with berries, an apple with a piece of cheese, or walnuts with pear slices.

如果你患有糖尿病，营养师会推荐一些特别的调整方法：克利夫兰诊所人类营养中心的注册营养师茱莉亚·祖姆帕诺（Julia Zumpano）说，你可能会受益于全天少量多餐，以及将水果与蛋白质来源搭配食用以稳定血糖。这可以包括希腊酸奶或茅屋芝士搭配浆果，苹果搭配一块奶酪，或者核桃搭配梨片。

Also, consuming lots of soluble fiber—including whole grains, legumes, beans, and pears—can “reduce spikes in glucose levels because it’s digested more slowly,” Salge Blake says.

此外，Salge Blake 表示，摄入大量可溶性纤维——包括全谷物、豆类、豌豆和梨——“可以降低血糖水平的剧烈波动，因为它的消化速度更慢。”

OSTEOPOROSIS

骨质疏松症

Maintaining bone density is super important if you have osteoporosis but the Mediterranean diet doesn’t emphasize foods that are loaded with calcium or vitamin D. That’s why it’s important to “add low-fat or fat-free dairy foods such as milk or Greek yogurt to get enough calcium and vitamin D,” says Keith Ayoob, a dietitian in New York City and an associate professor emeritus of pediatrics at the Albert Einstein College of Medicine. “You need the calcium even if you don’t need dairy.”

如果你患有骨质疏松症，保持骨密度至关重要，但地中海饮食并不强调富含钙或维生素D的食物。纽约市营养师、爱因斯坦医学院儿科荣休副教授基思·阿尤布（Keith Ayoob）说：“这就是为什么添加低脂或脱脂乳制品，如牛奶或希腊酸奶，以摄入足够的钙和维生素D非常重要。”他还补充道：“即使你不需要乳制品，你也需要钙。”

If you use plant-based milks, make sure they’re fortified with calcium and vitamin D, says Salge Blake. Also, keep in mind that canned fish—such as salmon, sardines, and anchovies—are good sources of calcium because they contain soft bones.

萨尔吉·布雷克说，如果你饮用植物奶，务必确保它们强化了钙和维生素D。此外，请记住，罐装鱼——比如三文鱼、沙丁鱼和凤尾鱼——是钙的良好来源，因为它们含有软骨。

MAKING IT EVEN MORE PERSONAL

使其更具个性化

You can also adapt the Mediterranean diet for your own personal preferences. “It needs to include a few basics but there’s a lot of flexibility,” says Ayoob. If you’re vegetarian, for example, you can stick with plant-based foods and add eggs, cheese, yogurt, and milk. Pescatarians can take the same approach and add fish and seafood to their meals.

你也可以根据自己的个人喜好来调整地中海饮食。Ayoob 说：“它需要包含一些基本要素，但也有很大的灵活性。”例如，如果你是素食者，你可以坚持以植物性食物为主，并添加鸡蛋、奶酪、酸奶和牛奶。鱼素者（不吃肉类但吃鱼和海鲜的素食者）可以采取同样的方法，并在餐食中加入鱼和海鲜。

“Start incorporating facets of the Mediterranean diet that are most appealing to you as opposed to being overwhelmed by the whole picture then build upon that base,” suggests Zumpano. “Little steps make a big difference.”

“从地中海饮食中最吸引你的那些方面开始采纳，而不是被整体的宏大图景所压倒，然后在此基础上逐步完善，”Zumpano 建议道。“小小的步骤也能带来巨大的改变。”

Here are the core strategies to follow:

以下是需要遵循的核心策略：

Eat more plant-based foods. That means including a wide variety of fruits, vegetables, legumes, beans, nuts, seeds, and whole grains. Try to have at least three servings each of fruits and vegetables per day and aim for produce in a variety of colors, which will bring in plenty of phytochemicals (health-promoting compounds in plants) and antioxidants, Salge Blake says.

多吃植物性食物。这意味着要摄入各种各样的水果、蔬菜、豆类、坚果、种子和全谷物。Salge Blake 说，尽量每天至少摄入三份水果和蔬菜，并选择颜色多样的农产品，这样可以摄入丰富的植物化学物质（植物中促进健康的化合物）和抗氧化剂。

Choose lean sources of protein. Eat more fish, seafood, poultry, and legumes and less red meat. “Try going vegetarian once a week,” suggests Baer-Sinnott. In addition to providing you with good-quality protein, these changes will reduce your intake of saturated fats.

选择精益蛋白质来源。多吃鱼、海鲜、禽肉和豆类，少吃红肉。Baer-Sinnott 建议，“每周尝试素食一次。”这些改变不仅能为你提供优质蛋白质，还能减少饱和脂肪的摄入。

Consume good fats. While extra virgin olive oil is a staple in the Mediterranean diet, you can use other healthy, neutral oils—such as grapeseed oil, walnut oil, peanut oil, or corn oil—in your cooking instead, Ayoob says. Also, stock up on health-promoting fats such as nuts, seeds, avocados, and fatty fish such as salmon, mackerel, and sardines.

摄入有益脂肪。Ayoob表示，虽然特级初榨橄榄油是地中海饮食中的主要食材，但你也可以在烹饪时使用其他健康的、味道中性的油类，例如葡萄籽油、核桃油、花生油或玉米油。此外，还要多摄入有益健康的脂肪，比如坚果、种子、鳄梨，以及三文鱼、鲭鱼和沙丁鱼等富含脂肪的鱼类。

Switch to whole grains. Trade in white bread, pasta, and rice for whole-grain options like whole-wheat bread, whole-grain pasta or bean-based pasta, brown rice, quinoa, oats, barley, and the like. Try to incorporate whole grains with every meal, Zumpano says.

转向全谷物。用全麦面包、全麦或豆类意面、糙米、藜麦、燕麦、大麦等全谷物选项，取代白面包、意大利面和精白米饭。Zumpano建议，争取每顿饭都加入全谷物。

Add healthy treats in moderation. These can include a small piece of dark chocolate or an occasional glass of wine. “The Mediterranean diet is easy to stay on because it’s not restrictive—it’s part of a lifestyle,” says Baer-Sinnott.

适度享用健康的零食。这可以包括一小块黑巧克力或偶尔一杯葡萄酒。Baer-Sinnott说：“地中海饮食之所以容易坚持，是因为它不具有限制性——它是生活方式的一部分。”

Ultimately, there isn’t a one-size-fits-all style to the Mediterranean diet. Finding ways to make it work for you, Katz says, is one of the best ways to “love foods that love you back.”

归根结底，地中海饮食并没有一个万能的模式。凯茨表示，找到适合自己的方式，是“爱那些有益于你身体的食物”的最佳途径之一。