Potential usefulness of Mediterranean diet polyphenols against COVID-19-induced inflammation: a review of the current knowledge.
Study Goal
The researchers aimed to evaluate the potential benefits of phenolic compounds in the Mediterranean diet as preventive/therapeutic agents against COVID-19, focusing on their antioxidant and anti-inflammatory effects.
Results Summary
The study found that hydroxytyrosol, resveratrol, quercetin, catechins, and naringenin may help mitigate COVID-19 by enhancing antioxidant enzyme activity, reducing ROS production, scavenging free radicals, and suppressing MMP-9 and NF-κB activity, which are involved in the cytokine storm.
Population
General population, with implications for COVID-19 prevention/therapy.
Effective Dosage
Not specified
Duration
Not specified
Interactions
None mentioned
| Intervention | Direction | Endpoint | Population | Dosage | Impact | Claim # |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Mediterranean diet | decrease | cardiovascular diseases, metabolic syndrome, or several cancer types | populations living in the Mediterranean basin during the 50s-60s of the last century | - | demonstrated beneficial effects in the prevention | #1 |
Mediterranean diet | decrease | COVID-19 | - | - | potential usefulness | #2 |
hydroxytyrosol, resveratrol, flavonols such as quercetin, flavanols like catechins, and flavanones on the order of naringenin | decrease | COVID-19 | - | - | potential benefits | #3 |
hydroxytyrosol, resveratrol, flavonols such as quercetin, flavanols like catechins, and flavanones on the order of naringenin | increase | Nrf-2 | - | - | increase in the synthesis and translocations | #4 |
hydroxytyrosol, resveratrol, flavonols such as quercetin, flavanols like catechins, and flavanones on the order of naringenin | increase | antioxidant enzymes | - | - | increases the activity | #5 |
hydroxytyrosol, resveratrol, flavonols such as quercetin, flavanols like catechins, and flavanones on the order of naringenin | decrease | ROS production | - | - | reduces | #6 |
hydroxytyrosol, resveratrol, flavonols such as quercetin, flavanols like catechins, and flavanones on the order of naringenin | decrease | free radicals | - | - | scavenging | #7 |
hydroxytyrosol, resveratrol, flavonols such as quercetin, flavanols like catechins, and flavanones on the order of naringenin | decrease | MMP-9 | - | - | suppression of the activity | #8 |
hydroxytyrosol, resveratrol, flavonols such as quercetin, flavanols like catechins, and flavanones on the order of naringenin | decrease | NF-κB | - | - | inhibition | #9 |
The Mediterranean diet is a dietary pattern typical of the populations living in the Mediterranean basin during the 50s-60s of the last century. This diet has demonstrated beneficial effects in the prevention of several pathologies such as cardiovascular diseases, metabolic syndrome, or several cancer types, at least in part, due to its antioxidant compounds. Since the COVID-19 pandemic started, different authors have been studying the effects of certain dietary habits on the presence of COVID-19 and its severity, and the Mediterranean diet is one of them. This review gathers data from studies supporting the potential usefulness of the main phenolic compounds present in the Mediterranean diet, based on their antioxidant and anti-inflammatory effects, as preventive/therapeutic agents against COVID-19. The current evidence supports the potential benefits that hydroxytyrosol, resveratrol, flavonols such as quercetin, flavanols like catechins, and flavanones on the order of naringenin could have on COVID-19. This is due to the increase in the synthesis and translocations of Nrf-2, which increases the activity of antioxidant enzymes and thus reduces ROS production, the scavenging of free radicals, and the suppression of the activity of MMP-9, which is involved in the cytokine storm, and the inhibition of NF-κB.