introduction

WHY WILD IS BETTER

“A village means that you are not alone, knowing that in the people, the trees, the earth, there is something that belongs to you, waiting for you when you are not there.”

Cesare Pavese

People are willing to try anything to feel better. We spend billions of dollars on designer vitamins and minerals, heart-pumping exercise programs, body-relaxing yoga, mind-calming meditation retreats, and fancy five-star spas. We fill our shopping carts with heirloom vegetables and so-called miracle grains, and pour money into the latest super, energy-boosting elixirs, green juices, and smoothies. We’re even willing to chew on hemp and chia seeds and follow ultrastrict detox diets, fasts, and cleanses. And yet, we’re still sick, tired, overweight, superstressed, and unhappy. In the US alone, 60 to 70 million people suffer from digestive diseases such as gastroesophogeal reflux, ulcers, Crohn’s disease, celiac disease, colitis, and irritable bowel syndrome—which often are entry points for other illnesses. Even if we don’t necessarily see ourselves as sick, we’re still throwing back a staggering number of diet pills, sleeping medications, antidepressants, painkillers, and antacids. Maybe—just maybe—it has something to do with the mountains of sugar and piles of processed foods that we eat every day, despite the numerous admonitions from nutrition experts that these things are a danger to our health. Why, despite all the health advice—from the experts on down to Instagram “celebrities” offering so-called solutions—are we still eating like crazy and feeling run-down and sick?

Well, what if I told you that you could change all that? And that it was as simple and straightforward as following the diet and lifestyle choices that are still practiced today in the Mediterranean, a lifestyle that has evolved over centuries to nurture and support healthy digestion and a thriving microbiome?

Take these two modern examples of Wild Mediterranean life, both closely resembling people I know:

George is a handsome goat herder in his early fifties who lives in the Greek Peloponnese area of Sparta. He’s lean and strong—which indicates that he has a healthy amount of testosterone—plus he has a zest for life. Each morning, he starts his day early with a shot of olive oil and a piece of high-fiber barley husk bread topped with some feta cheese. (A paltry breakfast by Western standards but actually the optimal combination of fat and carbohydrates to sustain the body!) He follows his goats around the rocky landscape for a few hours as they eat fresh grass and herbs, until early afternoon, when he leads them all back home. Lunch is the biggest meal of the day and consists of abundant amounts of roasted vegetables, a bit of braised lamb, lentil soup, and/or boiled greens served with lemon and olive oil. After lunch, he likes to “spend a little time” with his wife, the local euphemism for a common ritual of having post-lunch sex. Afterward, he heads back out with his goats until about six p.m., when he either gets together with friends or spends time with his two children. Then it’s off to bed, where he makes sure to get plenty of sleep each night.

Then there’s Sophia, a beautiful young woman in her early thirties who lives in a small seaside town not far from Florence, Italy. Sophia is college-educated and works full-time in an advertising agency. With a lithe figure, flawless skin, and lovely long hair, she is the image of health. Even though her desk job requires that she sit for much of the day, her daily life still includes a lot of natural, active movement, especially walking—whether it’s to work, to the market, or to see friends—and a healthy work-life balance. On Sundays she shops at the local farmers’ market and stocks up on kitchen essentials: small fish such as sardines (which she’s been eating since she was a small child) and a wide array of seasonal fruits and vegetables. When she isn’t cooking for friends and family, she prepares simple meals for herself.

Both Sophia and George are examples of a healthy, well-rounded life. While I’m not suggesting that you won’t reap the benefits of this program if you don’t acquire a herd of goats or move to a remote Mediterranean village, do consider how George and Sophia approach their daily routines—with balance and a focus on wholesome foods that nourish all the body’s systems (specifically the digestive system, or the gut, which we’ll talk much more about in a bit), natural movement, and socializing. You, too, could benefit from this simple equation:

Eating delicious, whole foods + moving the way nature originally intended us to + connecting with other like-minded people = your best health.

No “superfoods,” magic potions, or strict deprivation regimens are required. I know that it sounds too good to be true—and way too easy. But I’ve seen the miraculous effects of this approach firsthand. In addition to traveling around the globe to villages in places like Peru, Norway, France, Spain, and Mexico to collect the lifestyle secrets of the longest-living among them, I’ve also spent every summer since I was born in my native Greece. In these villages, chronic diseases—especially those linked to poor digestive health—are virtually nonexistent and life expectancies of ninety to one hundred years (and older) are common. Within these remote corners of the world, people have mastered the art of living: actively and happily. And it hasn’t stressed their bodies, their budgets, or their psyches to do so. When I brought these concepts to my practice, I successfully nurtured my clients back to vibrancy, wellness, and joy. And along the way I found my own path to good health.

I discovered that a diet made up of foods traditionally found in the Mediterranean (lean meat, seafood, seasonal fruits and vegetables, olive oil, and other healthy fats) provides the optimal balance of nutrients to keep the gut—the engine responsible for powering our bodies and immune system—running the way it should. It’s now thought that the microbiome acts as a “second genome” to our DNA sequencing, meaning if our DNA is the blueprint that dictates how prone we are to disease, the microbiome is the overlay to that blueprint that can either flip the switch for less-than-ideal health conditions or keep them at bay. As you’ll learn in Chapter 2, a healthy gut is the secret to resolving chronic conditions like asthma, eczema, depression, and acne; treating diseases such as heart disease, high blood pressure, diabetes, and cancer; not to mention maintaining a healthy, lean weight (thanks to an efficiently fueled metabolism) and living a long, ailment-free life.

Let’s make one thing clear from the start: This is not a diet book. Well, at least not in the sense that the primary and ultimate goal of my methods is to result in weight loss complete with dogmatic do’s and don’ts, calorie-counting, and macronutrient policing (carbs bad! fat bad!). Rather—like most of the advice in this book—I’m taking things back to the roots, including the very notion of “diet.” The term derives from the Greek word diaita, meaning “way of life, regimen, and dwelling.” And that’s exactly what this book is: a guide to regaining your health and digestive balance by making a series of long-lasting lifestyle choices, from approaching the world with childlike curiosity and a sense of play, to regularly enjoying nature, to minimizing stress and getting better-quality sleep (and more of it), to using self-care products that keep you feeling beautiful from the outside in. I call this approach Wild Mediterranean not only because all the principles are based on the successful health practices and foods favored in that part of the world, but also because getting “wild”—or aligning yourself more closely with nature, from your food to your surroundings—is essential for building optimal health. Or more specifically, a resilient, robust digestive system.

Many of my clients come to me looking for an easy fix, whether they want to lose weight or remedy a chronic condition. I always tell them that there’s no magic solution. I do, however, know that the process of restoring your digestive health can also bring you to a profound, meaningful connection with yourself, your surroundings, and those around you.

On a deep, perhaps subconscious, level, Wild Mediterranean living resonates within us because it’s connecting us with a community through food and culture, whether or not we’re actually from this particular part of the world. It’s connecting us to somewhere we’ve been, where we are now, or where we’d like ultimately to be. Unlike the Paleo approach, which asks followers to connect to their caveman forebears, who were slurping up bugs and clubbing animals to death (though, to be fair, they also weren’t eating processed food), connecting to this “food tribe”—along with the delicious traditional foods that nurture digestive health—is relatable. We can all envision ourselves as—and aspire to be—members of a thriving, close-knit community where health is synonymous with living joyfully, whether we live in a bustling urban neighborhood or a sparsely populated rural area. And you can achieve it, too. It all starts with adopting a new diaita—or way of living.

To begin, we’ll talk about your body and how it operates. True wellness begins with proper digestive health. I’ll walk you through how this system works, why it makes the difference between chronic disease and longevity, and signs that yours might not be performing as it should. Then I’ll outline exactly how we’re going to create and maintain optimal digestive health, beginning with a biome-healing “pre-tox” followed by a three-day whole-food detox that’s specifically designed to suit your unique health issues and to reestablish digestive balance. We’ll talk about the delicious new go-to foods that will rejuvenate and support your body, and I’ll outline a plan for enjoying these foods every day, all year long. You’ll see that there’s no need to feel deprived on the path to health. The only thing I’m going to take away is your discomfort and discontent, and in exchange you’ll get a long, healthy life fueled by a wide spectrum of versatile, satisfying foods that will in turn promote a greater diversity of microbes in your gut.

To help you get a head start on your new lifestyle—and help you continue to support your digestive health—you’ll find fifty of my favorite recipes inspired by the cuisines of Greece, Spain, France, and Italy. I’ve taken classic staples like roast chicken and given them a “Four Countries: Four Ways” spin. For example, the same basic technique can take you from paprika-peppered Spain, to the signature lemon and oregano of Greece, to the lavender-scented herbes de Provence of France, to the rosemary and sun-dried tomato notes of Italy. (Because no one ever said it needs to be all Greek, all the time.) These foods aren’t just delicious, they’re scientifically proven to keep your digestive health in balance owing to their beneficially “wild” nature (something we’ll talk much more about in the next chapter). I’ll help you “wild” your pantry and fridge with shopping lists and must-have staples, along with plenty of kitchen tips and tricks to guide you through the cooking process.

From there we’ll turn our focus to living wild, or boosting health with other simple lifestyle changes inspired by my Mediterranean forebears and scientifically proven to support strong digestive health. This includes a daily exercise plan (no need for the gym or scheduled classes!), stress relief techniques, ways to create a closer community, or how to find your own village. After all, it takes a village to stay healthy! I’ll also throw in some of my favorite natural beauty secrets for keeping your hair shiny and skin radiant using age-old wisdom and Wild Mediterranean ingredients.

Ultimately, I created the Wild Mediterranean program because I wanted to protect people from the inaccuracies that are so pervasive in the health and diet world and give my clients the tools for long-term success. I was tired of seeing my clients, who after months of hard work on calorie-centric diets or juice cleanses, would end up at their starting weight, if not heavier. From that frustration came the resolve to give people access to what I’ve come to know as a health expert. I’ve seen the data that supports what Mediterranean cultures have known for centuries: that eating certain nutrient-dense foods combined with living a life full of natural movement, joy, and community leads to long-standing health, especially in the gut. Couple that with the emerging science of just how crucial our digestive health is to overall wellness, and we have a clear picture of how we can finally succeed in losing weight, beating chronic illness, and generally feeling better. And the best part? If you fall off the path, you can always come back. There are no absolutes here; only the requirement that you have a sense of adventure, the belief that change is good, and the knowledge that true wellness is in your hands.

Kalí órexi! (Good appetite!)