
15. Foods to Avoid
When participating in this diet, there are certain foods you will want to stay away from. Added sugar in the form of soda, candy, ice cream, and table sugar should all be avoided once on the Mediterranean diet. While whole grains are admissible, refined grains are not, which include white bread and pasta made with refined wheat. Though we just spent an entire section discussing healthy fats, this point is important enough to bring up again: bad fats are the only ones that need to be limited in this diet. Bad fats include trans fat, which can be found in items such as margarine.
While olive oil is a good source of fat, refined oils should not be used while adhering to the Mediterranean diet. Do not use soybean oil, canola oil, or cottonseed oil in your cooking during the duration of the diet. You will also want to avoid all processed meats such as processed sausages and hot dogs. Since you are to limit your red and white meat intake anyway, avoiding these foods should not pose much of a problem. Another food item to avoid is highly processed foods. This can include cereal, cheese, bread, and convenience food (most things you throw into the microwave).