Throughout the 20th century, the rise of nutritionism brought about an increasing fear of fat, the belief that it might be the primary cause of heart disease. This idea that fat, specifically saturated fat, is a harbinger of death started all the way back in the 1940s, when “changes in…
Egypt is the third most populous country in Africa; it is home to over 95 million people (“Egypt”). While it is largely a middle-income country, Egypt is rapidly encountering economic issues due to food crises. The most pressing issues involve poverty, affecting 28 percent of the population, and spatial inequality…
Lebanon currently faces numerous challenges, from a poor economy, to war spilling over from nearby Syria, and to a corrupt government. Lebanon has grown more in debt in recent years, so much so that its “debt now stands at roughly 152 percent” of its Gross Domestic Product (Bulos, 2019). This…
Slovenia has a tremendously varied geography which contributes to differing climate patterns throughout the country. An alpine climate prevails in the north/northeast near the mountains, a sub-Mediterranean climate in coastal areas, and a continental climate in the east (climatechangepost.com). As would be expected, many of the Mediterranean foods that Slovenia…
When you think of Algeria, I bet you don’t think of a country that is four times the size of Texas and the largest country in the African continent. This country often goes unrecognized as both African and Mediterranean, but its northern edge borders the Mediterranean Sea. Surprisingly, only twelve…
Few countries have captured the alluring essence of the Mediterranean as well as the island of Cyprus. Located off the coast of Turkey and Lebanon in the eastern Mediterranean Sea, Cyprus is known for its rural countrysides and gorgeous coastlines. For this reason, people of Cyprus are often closely associated…
When discussing the effects of war, the most obvious and commonly discussed include the number of causalities and the destruction of cities’ infrastructure and economies. However, the effects of war are not usually discussed in rural areas and the lives of people living there. In Syria, the Syrian Civil War…
A villain has come to rid Spain of the Mediterranean diet. He despises every aspect and characteristic that makes up the heroic and healthy Mediterranean diet. The whole grains and vegetables particularly cause rage and high cholesterol to pound through the villain’s veins. His name: Westernization. Certain aspects of western…
Most people know little about the diet and cultures of small European countries such as Bosnia and Herzegovina. This country in southeastern Europe has only existed under its current name since 1991 (Columbia). Its culture contains aspects of many different countries’ cultural traditions because of its shifting borders throughout the…
Introduction The expansive North African nation of Libya is largely dominated by the Sahara Desert. With the majority of the country classified climatologically as a desert under the Köppen Climate Classification System, only about 1 percent of the land area, mostly along its northern Mediterranean coast, is considered arable. As…
