Abstract
The possibility that a French perspective might contribute to and benefit the Mediterranean diet is illustrated by its low obesity prevalence: amongst European countries France has the lowest numbers of overweight and obese people. There are many common traits between French habits and those in Mediterranean countries, not only with regards to food, but also in the organization and structure of meals during the day. Also, France, because of its cultural attachment to its gastronomy, has better resisted the “westernization” of food habits compared to Mediterranean countries. The main characteristics of the French food habits, namely, no snacking, three meals a-day, a three course meal, eating together, cooking practices and avoidance of “junk food”, are listed, together with their potential health implications. This is followed by a discussion on how to implement these characteristics, and the possible difficulties that can be encountered when these principals are applied to other cultures.
This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution.
Buying options
Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout
Purchases are for personal use only
Learn about institutional subscriptionsNotes
- 1.
The traditional beverage in the Southern Mediterranean is tea, rich in catechins like wine. If alcohol represents a limit to wine consumption, the added sugar in tea is likely a problem with regard to obesity [19].
References
WHO. http://www.who.int/.
World Obesity. http://www.worldobesity.org.
Ng M, Fleming T, Robinson M. Global, regional, and national prevalence of overweight and obesity in children and adults during 1980-2013: a systematic analysis for the Global Burden of Disease Study 2013. Lancet. 2014;S0140:60460–8.
Obepi. 2012. www.roche.fr/content/dam/corporate/roche_fr/doc/obepi_2012.pdf.
Mamalakis G, Kafatos A, Manios Y, Anagnostopoulou T, Apostolaki I. Obesity indices in a cohort of primary school children in Crete: a six year prospective study. Int J Obes Relat Metab Disord. 2000;24:765–71.
Tessier S, Gerber M. Comparison between Sardinia and Malta: the Mediterranean diet revisited. Appetite. 2005;45:121–6.
Fischler C, Masson E. Manger. Français, Européens et Américains face à l’alimentation. Odile Jacob, Paris; 2008.
Poulain JP. Sociologies de l’alimentation Presses. Paris: Universitaires de France; 2002.
Aymard M, Grignon C, Sabban F. A la recherche du temps social. In: Aymard M, Grignon C, Sabban F, editors. Le temps de manger, Alimentation, emploi du temps et rythmes sociaux. Paris: Ed, Institut National de la Recherche Agronomique, de la Maison des sciences de l’homme; 1993.
Scali J, Richard A, Gerber M. Diet profiles in a population sample from Mediterranean Southern France. Public Health Nutr. 2001;4:173–82.
Estruch R, Ros E, Salas-Salvado J, et al. Primary prevention of cardiovascular disease with a Mediterranean diet. N Engl J Med. 2013;368:1279–90.
Perrin AE, Dallongeville J, Ducimetière P, et al. Interactions between traditional regional determinants and socio-economic status on dietary patterns in a sample of French men. Br J Nutr. 2005;93:109–14.
Cohen DA, Sturm R, Lara M, Gilbert M, Gee S. Discretionary calorie intake a priority for obesity prevention: results of rapid participatory approaches in low-income US communities. J Public Health (Oxf). 2010;32:379–86.
Bes-Rastrollo M, Sanchez-Villegas A, Basterra-Gortari FJ, et al. Prospective study of self-reported usual snacking and weight gain in a Mediterranean cohort: the SUN project. Clin Nutr. 2010;29:323–30.
Braude L, Stevenson RJ. Watching television while eating increases energy intake. Examining the mechanisms in female participants. Appetite. 2014;76C:9–16.
Chaput JP, Klingenberg L, Astrup A, Sjodin AM. Modern sedentary activities promote overconsumption of food in our current obesogenic environment. Obes Rev. 2011;12:e12–20.
Marsh S, Ni MC, Maddison R. The non-advertising effects of screen-based sedentary activities on acute eating behaviours in children, adolescents, and young adults. A systematic review. Appetite. 2013;71:259–73.
Walrand S, Short KR, Bigelow ML, et al. Functional impact of high protein intake on healthy elderly people. Am J Physiol Endocrinol Metab. 2008;295:E921–8.
Issa C, Darmon N, Salameh P, et al. Mediterranean diet pattern with low consumption of liquid sweets and refined cereals is negatively associated with adiposity in adults from rural Lebanon. Int J Obes (Lond). 2011;35:251–8.
Costanzo S, Di Castelnuovo A, Donati MB, Iacoviello L, de Gaetano G. Wine, beer or spirit drinking in relation to fatal and non-fatal cardiovascular events: a meta-analysis. Eur J Epidemiol. 2011;26:833–50.
Koppes LL, Dekker JM, Hendriks HF, Bouter LM, Heine RJ. Moderate alcohol consumption lowers the risk of type 2 diabetes: a meta-analysis of prospective observational studies. Diabetes Care. 2005;28:719–25.
Mekary RA, Rimm EB, Giovannucci E, et al. Joint association of glycemic load and alcohol intake with type 2 diabetes incidence in women. Am J Clin Nutr. 2011;94:1525–32.
Fedirko V, Tramacere I, Bagnardi V, et al. Alcohol drinking and colorectal cancer risk: an overall and dose-response meta-analysis of published studies. Ann Oncol. 2011;22:1958–72.
World Cancer Research Fund. 2010. http://www.dietandcancerreport.org/cancer_resource_center/downloads/cu/Breast-Cancer-2010-Report.pdf.
Chen WY, Rosner B, Hankinson SE, Colditz GA, Willett WC. Moderate alcohol consumption during adult life, drinking patterns, and breast cancer risk. JAMA. 2011;306:1884–90.
Ferrari P, Licaj I, Muller DC, et al. Lifetime alcohol use and overall and cause-specific mortality in the European Prospective Investigation into Cancer and nutrition (EPIC) study. BMJ Open. 2014;4:e005245. doi:10.1136/bmjopen-2014-005245.
Hoffman R, Gerber M. The Mediterranean diet Health and Science. UK: Wiley-Blackwell; 2012.
Gerber M. Santé et alimentation Méditerranéenne au quotidien. France: Edisud; 2004.
Vincent S, Gerber M, Bernard MC, et al. The Medi-RIVAGE study Mediterranean diet, cardiovascular risks and gene polymorphisms rationale, recruitment, design, dietary intervention and baseline characteristics of participants. Public Health Nutr. 2004;7:531–42.
Vincent-Baudry S, Defoort C, Gerber M, et al. The Medi-RIVAGE study: reduction of cardiovascular risk factors after 3 month-intervention with a Mediterranean-type diet or a low-fat diet. Am J Clin Nutr. 2005;82:964–71.
Malik VS, Pan A, Willett WC, Hu FB. Sugar-sweetened beverages and weight gain in children and adults: a systematic review and meta-analysis. Am J Clin Nutr. 2013;98:1084–102.
Grob K, Biedermann M, Scherbaum E, Roth M, Rieger K. Food contamination with organic materials in perspective: packaging materials as the largest and least controlled source? A view focusing on the European situation. Crit Rev Food Sci Nutr. 2006;46:529–35.
Harley KG, Aguilar Schall R, Chevrier J, et al. Prenatal and postnatal bisphenol A exposure and body mass index in childhood in the CHAMACOS cohort. Environ Health Perspect. 2013;121:514–20.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Editor information
Editors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
Copyright information
© 2016 Springer International Publishing Switzerland
About this chapter
Cite this chapter
Gerber, M. (2016). Implementing the Mediterranean Diet: A French Perspective and Comparisons with Other Mediterranean Countries. In: Romagnolo, D., Selmin, O. (eds) Mediterranean Diet. Nutrition and Health. Humana Press, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-27969-5_5
Download citation
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-27969-5_5
Published:
Publisher Name: Humana Press, Cham
Print ISBN: 978-3-319-27967-1
Online ISBN: 978-3-319-27969-5
eBook Packages: MedicineMedicine (R0)