The Mediterranean diet is a diet for health and happiness, but not for weight loss. If you want to have a healthy heart then you really need to read this book. Doctors have been advising their patients to follow a Mediterranean diet for some years now. This was all because there seemed to be some benefits to eating like the Mediterranean's. It appeared that they had healthy hearts and circulation systems. It was thought to be related to the things that they ate. In this book you can read about the island where people regularly live to a 100 and still manage to have full and active lives, including even a continuing sex life well into old age This book looks at the reasons why these people manage to live such disease free lives for so long. There is also the latest Spanish study which proves that a Mediterranean diet really can reduce your risk of having a heart attack or a stroke. It also shows that the usual low fat diet you are told to go on does absolutely nothing to help your heart. It is not a matter of cutting out fats: it is a case of what you substitute them with. All is explained using evidence from the Spanish study and the Greek islanders as well. In the book there are examples of Mediterranean diet recipes that you can cook for yourself. A lot of these recipes have fully illustrated instructions and are based on the things that Greeks, Spanish and the rest of the people from the Mediterranean regions actually eat. There are too many Mediterranean recipes out there that have been so Americanized that you still end up eating all the bad things that you used to do. This book only has authentic recipes that follow the ideas involved in good Mediterranean food. You can look at the Mediterranean diet meal plan that Greek islanders eat all of the time. You can also use the recipes provided to produce your own Mediterranean diet plan. Included in the reviews of Mediterranean foods is a Mediterranean diet food list so that you know which things to put into your meals, and how to find recipes or adapt existing recipes to your super new Mediterranean diet. Mediterranean cuisine is not only healthy, but is in fact tasty and easy to follow. It is not just about Mediterranean salads. There are plenty of other dishes that you can make in your Mediterranean kitchen. More than anything, you will come to realize that it is not just about a diet: it is about following a Mediterranean lifestyle including getting regular relaxation, sleep and exercise. Once you are enjoying yourself with your new Mediterranean lifestyle you will know that your heart is happy too