From time to time, comments appear highlighting the benefits of a certain traditional diet. Today I will talk about the Nordic diet or the Vikings, this name that has obvious connotations, since we all have the idyllic image of the Vikings (movies, series, etc.)

Traditional diets in most societies are suitable for the population living there (weather conditions, availability, culture, cooking, etc.). They are based on the most abundant foods in an area. This is especially important when the benefits of a certain food (fruit, fish, etc.) or method of preparation (smoked, fermented, etc.) are discovered and transmitted from generation to generation.

It is important to remember that eating habits, that is, what a person eats, will depend on multiple socio-economic factors. That is to say, you cannot separate food from the society, economy and culture of a certain area.

Nordic diet principles
After this introduction we will indicate the principles of the Nordic diet are:

1- Fruits and vegetables daily (berries, cabbages, tubers, legumes, potatoes, and herbs)
2- Whole grains (oats, rye, and barley)
3- Nordic fish (herring, salmon)
4- Less quantity of meat but with higher quality
5- Game meat, instead of farm
6- Organic products whenever possible
7- Avoid food additives
8- Meals based on seasonal products in their optimal flavor and properties.
9- Homemade food instead of “fast-food”
10- Avoid pre-cooked food, highly processed, which generates a large amount of waste
The key to choosing these foods is based on the climate of that area. There is little diversity of crops, but they take advantage of those that have berries, cabbages, apples, pears, root vegetables, oats and rye; in addition to having abundant fishing in its seas and lakes.

It is much more accessible for any inhabitant of Scandinavia to consume berries than a banana or orange, typical of warmer climates. In other words, they use the healthy products that their land offers them. The best food recommendations should be based on the origin of the population and the resources they have to supply themselves.

The Nordic diet is not a miracle diet, it is an indigenous diet of the Nordic region with numerous benefits. When conducting studies in populations of these northern European countries, a decrease in their mortality rate and benefits are observed by reducing the probability of suffering from diabetes or obesity.

Finally some reflections:

“We must take advantage of what the land where we live offers us and the wide variety of products that we have at our fingertips.”

“The wide variety of foods that we have at our disposal allows us to vary our diet and consume healthy foods from other cultures, something that our ancestors could not have imagined, take advantage of it!”