A positive, non-punitive nutrition that re-evaluates the good aspects of the Mediterranean diet but without demonizing the contributions of a western style diet. Because people do not want to feel banned from foods that they may love: they prefer to know what is good for them. It is the concept that emerged from the opening panel of today, Friday 24 February. The first to be unexpectedly cleared were
cheeses. "We live in a grassophobic society," said the nutritionist
Andrea Poli - But is it really necessary, as they insist on repeating ourselves for years, to reduce the total consumption of fat? Probably not totally. Recent studies show that
the only fats to really hurt are the trans, which we have long avoided. Saturated fats do not necessarily hurt. Although it is always advisable to add two vegetable fatty acids to our diet such as Alfa1linolenico (ALA) and Linoleico (LA) (essential for life). So we can eat cheese with more tranquility. The same can be said for other foods, often viewed with suspicion, such as coffee, tea, chocolate, dried fruit, all rich in polyphenols, the same nutrients that make extra virgin olive oil healthy. It is therefore not necessary, according to Professor Poli, to renounce the most pleasant and convivial aspects of food in order to stay healthy: indeed, these aspects should be encouraged, as they are fundamental elements of a long and healthy life. Same conclusion that emerges also from the researches of the
Barilla Center for Food and Nutrition, in the room with Katarzyna Dembska to present the
double pyramid of food sustainability. "What is good for health - say Barilla - is also good for the planet". Thus, if at the top of the food pyramid there are dairy products and, above all, red meats, to be consumed with moderation, at the top of the inverted pyramid of environmental sustainability are the same foods, the most impactful ones as regards the ecological footprint.
