Upcoming London cook Marianna Leivaditaki returns to her homeland in Chania, Crete, reconnecting with her family and seeking inspiration for her new menu. “People are always looking for the next best diet and the superfoods that will make them live forever. And at some point, I thought ‘I know what the healthiest food is, I grew up with it!’ That’s when I started concentrating on the cooking traditions of Crete”. Through Marianna’s journey we explore how the Mediterranean Diet was first ‘discovered’ in Crete after World War II by American scientists, who came to the island to study the dietary habits of the long-living local population. Archive films shot in Italy and Crete capture a rare glimpse into the lives of the Cretans in the 1950’s. At the same time, we see how Crete, birthplace of the Mediterranean Diet, is experiencing an epidemic of child obesity today.

Series Description

Food has a great influence on our well being and our body. Everybody knows that the Mediterranean Diet, consisting of plant based foods like vegetables, grains, nuts, legumes and fruits, with few or no animal products - is good for our health. Only few of us know, however, how particular plants affect different parts of our body, our heart and mind or how the food we eat can act as medicine, if used correctly. The Perfect Meal series follows five leading international scientists who gradually uncover the secret mechanisms of the Mediterranean Diet and reveal how certain ingredients and combinations of plant based foods can protect us from obesity, cardiovascular diseases, cancers and brain- ageing.