nitric oxide, a biochemical that helps blood vessels relax and dilate, Santos-Gallego adds.
These new findings agree with earlier studies that also showed similar benefits in men from a Mediterranean diet, Santos-Gallego says.
However, Santos-Gallego warns that men currently struggling to maintain an erection won’t see an immediate benefit in that area if they take up the diet.
“The Mediterranean diet is not going to be a treatment for erectile dysfunction,” Santos-Gallego says. “It’s not if a patient has erectile dysfunction, he will immediately start the Mediterranean diet and that will work like Viagra.”
Rather, men following the diet will have a lower chance of erectile dysfunction in the future, he notes.
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Freeman also cautioned against Americanizing the traditional Mediterranean diet, if you want to see benefits.
“A traditional Mediterranean is predominantly a plant-based diet. It’s loaded up with greens and lentils and maybe some olive oil, whereas in the United States when you think about Mediterranean everyone’s thinking about feta and lamb,” Freeman shares. “If you’re going out and having an incredibly rich, rich meal that’s ‘Mediterranean,’ that may not be the traditional take on it.”
Incorporating a Mediterranean diet into your life
If you are looking to take up a Mediterranean diet, it’s wise to consult with a dietician to come up with a meal plan, but essentially you can start by gradually making the following changes:
- Switch your fats to extra virgin olive oil
- Eat more nuts and olives
- Eat more whole-grain
- Begin or end each meal with a salad
- Eat more vegetables
- Eat at least three servings of legumes a week
- Eat less meat
- Replace other alcohol with wine (no more than 5 ounces per day for men and one glass per day for women)
- Replace sugary beverages with water
- Eat less high-fat/high-sugar desserts
- Eat more locally grown and season foods