Mediterranean Diet Review: Does It Work for Weight Loss?
Healthline Diet Rating: 4.88 out of 5
The Mediterranean diet has a long-standing reputation as one of the healthiest eating patterns around.
It’s also considered one of the most popular plans among dieters because it’s flexible, rich in flavorful foods, and brimming with health benefits.
In fact, the Mediterranean diet has been linked to increased weight loss, decreased inflammation, and a lower risk of chronic disease.
This article takes a look at the Mediterranean diet, including its benefits, potential drawbacks, foods to eat and avoid, and a sample meal plan.
How our ratings work
We considered six important standards and assigned a rating to each, with 1 being the lowest rating and 5 being the highest. The Overall Rating for each diet is an average of these ratings.
Weight Change: This rating considers how fast the diet will make you lose or gain weight, whether the weight change can be sustained for 3 months or longer, and whether the diet is a crash diet. A crash diet is a very low-calorie, restrictive diet that comes with lots of health risks. Crash dieting can cause muscle loss, a slowed metabolism, nutritional deficiencies, dizziness, and more. They’re not safe or healthy.
Healthy Eating Habits: This rating considers whether the diet limits entire food groups, and whether it disrupts your daily life with complex, specific requirements on what to eat or how to track your food. It also considers whether the diet focuses on long-term lifestyle changes and encourages habits like eating more whole foods, cooking at home, eating without distractions, etc.
Nutrition Quality: This rating considers whether the diet is based on whole foods rather than processed ones. It also considers whether the diet will cause nutrient deficiencies or a calorie deficiency if you do it for longer than 2 to 3 months. Though you can add vitamin and mineral supplements to any diet, it’s best to focus on getting what you need through a balanced diet.
Whole-Body Health: This rating considers whether the diet sets unrealistic goals, makes exaggerated claims, and promotes an unhealthy relationship with food or appearance. It also considers whether the diet promotes exercise and focuses on overall health rather than just weight. While you may have a weight-related goal you hope to achieve through dieting, it’s important to nourish your body and make sure you’re staying healthy regardless of how you choose to eat.
Sustainability: This rating considers how easy the diet is to follow, whether you can get support for it, and if it can be maintained for 6 to 12 months or longer. It also takes cost into consideration, since some diets require buying premade foods or paying membership fees. Diets that are sustainable are more likely to be healthy in the long term. Yo-yo dieting can contribute to health issues.
Evidence-Based: This rating considers whether there’s evidence to support the diet’s health claims. We review scientific research to see whether a diet has been clinically proven by impartial research.
HEALTHLINE RATING
Overall Rating 4.88
How we rated this diet
Weight Change 4.8
Whole-Body Health 5.0
Healthy Eating Habits 5.0
Sustainability 5.0
Nutrition Quality 5.0
Evidence-Based 4.5
How we rated this diet
Bottom Line
The Mediterranean diet encourages fruits, veggies, healthy fats, and whole grains while limiting processed foods and added sugar. It can help you lose weight, enhance heart health, reduce inflammation, and promote better blood sugar control.
Healthline Diet Rating: 4.88 out of 5
The Mediterranean diet has a long-standing reputation as one of the healthiest eating patterns around.
It’s also considered one of the most popular plans among dieters because it’s flexible, rich in flavorful foods, and brimming with health benefits.
In fact, the Mediterranean diet has been linked to increased weight loss, decreased inflammation, and a lower risk of chronic disease.
This article takes a look at the Mediterranean diet, including its benefits, potential drawbacks, foods to eat and avoid, and a sample meal plan.
How our ratings work
We considered six important standards and assigned a rating to each, with 1 being the lowest rating and 5 being the highest. The Overall Rating for each diet is an average of these ratings.
Weight Change: This rating considers how fast the diet will make you lose or gain weight, whether the weight change can be sustained for 3 months or longer, and whether the diet is a crash diet. A crash diet is a very low-calorie, restrictive diet that comes with lots of health risks. Crash dieting can cause muscle loss, a slowed metabolism, nutritional deficiencies, dizziness, and more. They’re not safe or healthy.
Healthy Eating Habits: This rating considers whether the diet limits entire food groups, and whether it disrupts your daily life with complex, specific requirements on what to eat or how to track your food. It also considers whether the diet focuses on long-term lifestyle changes and encourages habits like eating more whole foods, cooking at home, eating without distractions, etc.
Nutrition Quality: This rating considers whether the diet is based on whole foods rather than processed ones. It also considers whether the diet will cause nutrient deficiencies or a calorie deficiency if you do it for longer than 2 to 3 months. Though you can add vitamin and mineral supplements to any diet, it’s best to focus on getting what you need through a balanced diet.
Whole-Body Health: This rating considers whether the diet sets unrealistic goals, makes exaggerated claims, and promotes an unhealthy relationship with food or appearance. It also considers whether the diet promotes exercise and focuses on overall health rather than just weight. While you may have a weight-related goal you hope to achieve through dieting, it’s important to nourish your body and make sure you’re staying healthy regardless of how you choose to eat.
Sustainability: This rating considers how easy the diet is to follow, whether you can get support for it, and if it can be maintained for 6 to 12 months or longer. It also takes cost into consideration, since some diets require buying premade foods or paying membership fees. Diets that are sustainable are more likely to be healthy in the long term. Yo-yo dieting can contribute to health issues.
Evidence-Based: This rating considers whether there’s evidence to support the diet’s health claims. We review scientific research to see whether a diet has been clinically proven by impartial research.
HEALTHLINE RATING
Overall Rating 4.88
How we rated this diet
Weight Change 4.8
Whole-Body Health 5.0
Healthy Eating Habits 5.0
Sustainability 5.0
Nutrition Quality 5.0
Evidence-Based 4.5
How we rated this diet
Bottom Line
The Mediterranean diet encourages fruits, veggies, healthy fats, and whole grains while limiting processed foods and added sugar. It can help you lose weight, enhance heart health, reduce inflammation, and promote better blood sugar control.
