How do you benefit from the Mediterranean diet beyond losing weight?
Bracht: It is a delicious tasting and varied and – especially if the fish is still missing – a very healthy diet with a high fiber content for a healthy microbiome (intestinal flora) and thus a guarantee for a well-functioning immune system. Because healthy fiber, which can only be found in plants, nourishes the good intestinal bacteria and the bad ones – which would become more numerous with an increasing proportion of animal food – must starve.
The large amounts of phytochemicals, which are also not found in any animal products, are absolutely necessary to maintain health, but also to get well with existing diseases. In some cases, they work more efficiently than some medications and without any side effects. These phytochemicals are probably the most valuable health enhancers in our diet and serve to protect plants against sunburn, insects, bacteria and also viruses. It is precisely these functions that they also perform in our bodies. But be careful: conventionally grown plants contain much less of it, since they are sprayed with all kinds of insecticides, etc. and the plants treated in this way no longer build up their own protective mechanisms. Therefore, the plant foods should best be organically grown.
Is the diet suitable for the procurement of fresh ingredients in this country for the whole year?
Bracht: Definitely. In the meantime, there are already offers in the conventional supermarkets both from regional areas and with indications of seasonality. What I am particularly pleased about is that more and more value is placed on controlled organic cultivation. And if you love markets, you can get the right food here all year round.
Can people who are inexperienced in cooking cope with it?
Bracht: This kitchen does not take place at the star level, but always had to function simply and quickly and fill many hungry mouths and bellies and also be inexpensive. Therefore, it is ideal for everyone who wants to get started, but also for those who love cooking. Because it’s an honest kitchen that tastes like what’s on your plate.
In your new book “Plain Text Nutrition” you promise clarification in the food jungle, how do you do that?
Bracht: Claus Leitzmann and I are pooling our knowledge of about 75 years together on the topic of healthy eating. He from his scientific point of view, I from my practical experience. We have seen the “ups” and “downs” from a wide variety of dietary recommendations and diets, some of which have significant health effects. Exaggerated promises, disappointments, weight gain and the development of diseases, everything was there. It is not without reason that most people die from cardiovascular diseases, which are to a large extent (70-80%) nutrition-related. Obesity is the visible result of poor nutrition and the onset of most diseases.
People are unsettled because they have never learned what to look for in a healthy diet. That is why we set out in our book “Plain Text Nutrition” to create clarity and to write in a way that everyone can understand. It would be our greatest wish if the subject of nutrition were finally taught not only during medical studies, but also to all students during school time.
About Dr. med. Petra Bracht
Dr. med. Petra Bracht has specialized in the areas of nutrition and pain for over 30 years. Her work “Plain Text Nutrition”, which she collaborated with Prof. Dr. Claus Leitzmann has just appeared. On Wednesday, June 3rd at 7 p.m., a live reading / discussion with Petra Bracht and Claus Leitzmann will take place on the YouTube channel of Liebscher & Bracht.
– .
