05-08-2025
This Heart-Healthy Diet Has a Nordic Twist
When Cecilie Kyro used to summer with her grandparents on the Danish islands of Langeland and Oro, a typical breakfast was cold, plain oatmeal. For lunch, she'd have an open-faced sandwich (called 'smorrebrod') on dense rye bread, often topped with pickled herring, a small, fatty fish preserved in vinegar-based brine.
Dinner frequently included root vegetables with fish — or less frequently and in smaller portions, meat.
Now, as an epidemiologist at the Danish Cancer Institute in Copenhagen, Dr. Kyro studies how this eating pattern, more recently coined the Nordic diet, influences disease risk.
As with the famously healthy Mediterranean diet, the Nordic diet is rich in fruits and vegetables, whole grains and beneficial fats. While it hasn't been studied for as long as the Mediterranean diet, preliminary research suggests that the Nordic diet may have big rewards — especially for the heart.
What is the Nordic diet?
Similar to its southern cousin, the Nordic diet prioritizes fruits, vegetables, whole grains, nuts, seeds, legumes, lean proteins and fatty fish. The main difference is that it highlights food native to the Nordic region, including Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Norway and Sweden.
Instead of olive oil, the Nordic diet features rapeseed (or canola) oil — made from the rapeseed plant, which thrives in cooler temperatures. Root vegetables like turnips, carrots and parsnips, and cruciferous vegetables like cabbage and cauliflower, are staples of the diet. Blueberries, strawberries, lingonberries (small, tart fruits similar to cranberries) and other berries also play a prominent role, as do fruits like apples and pears.
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