Best diet for 2023

For the sixth year, the Mediterranean style of eating earned the title of best overall diet, according to 2023 ratings in the U.S. News & World Report. Meals from the Mediterranean also ranked first in the categories of diet best diet for healthy eating and best plant-based diet, the report said.

The diet features simple, plant-based cooking, with the majority of each meal focused on fruits and vegetables, whole grains, beans and seeds, with a few nuts and a heavy emphasis on extra-virgin olive oil, which is rich in omega-9 fatty acids and uses more herbs and spices and rely less on salt for flavor while reducing consumption of red meat and alcohol.

Fats other than olive oil, such as butter, are consumed rarely, if at all, and sugar and refined foods are reserved for special occasions.

Red meat is used sparingly, usually only to flavor a dish. Eating healthy, oily fish, which are packed with omega-3 fatty acids which nourish the brain cells, is encouraged, while eggs, dairy and poultry are eaten in much smaller portions than in the traditional Western diet.

Numerous studies have found the Mediterranean diet can reduce the risk for diabetes, high cholesterol, dementia, memory loss, depression and breast cancer. The Mediterranean diet has been shown in a number of studies to lower the risk of cardiovascular disease as well as stroke, diabetes, obesity and certain cancers.

Higher adherence to a Mediterranean-style diet was inversely related to weight gain, body fat percentage, triglycerides, and total cholesterol to HDL ratio.

However, the Mediterranean diet did not appear to slow cognitive decline in people with the ApoE gene, which dramatically raises the risk for Alzheimer's disease.