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Cardiovascular prevention: Mediterranean or low-fat diet?

European heart journal supplements : journal of the European Society of Cardiology
April 1, 2023
Pier Luigi Temporelli
Journal ArticleHuman Study
Study Details

Study Goal

The researchers aimed to compare the efficacy of a Mediterranean Diet versus a low-fat diet in preventing major cardiovascular events in patients with coronary artery disease.

Results Summary

The study found that over a 7-year follow-up, the Mediterranean Diet was superior to the low-fat diet in preventing major cardiovascular events, though the low-fat diet still showed some benefits.

Population

Patients with documented coronary artery disease (∼1000 participants).

Effective Dosage

Not specified (low-fat diet defined as ≤30% of daily calories from fat).

Duration

7 years.

Interactions

None mentioned.

Extracted Claims (3)
InterventionDirectionEndpointPopulationDosageImpactClaim #
low-fat diet
increase
cardiovascular health and beyond
-
-
is actually able to bring benefits
#1
Mediterranean Diet
increase
our health
-
-
have a positive impact
#2
Mediterranean Diet
increase
prevention of major cardiovascular events
patients with documented coronary artery disease
-
was superior
#3
Abstract

The international scientific community has long agreed on the fact that a low-fat diet is actually able to bring benefits to cardiovascular health and beyond. By low-fat diet, experts mean a diet where the average calories assimilated daily are made up of no more than 30% fat. The Mediterranean Diet, on the other hand, identifies a nutritional model inspired by the traditional eating habits of the countries bordering the Mediterranean Sea. It began to be studied scientifically in the 1950s and it is still today one of the diets that have a positive impact on our health when associated with correct lifestyles. Although epidemiological and mechanistic studies show similar results, there is no evidence from large-scale, long-term clinical trials on the efficacy of the Mediterranean Diet compared with another active group, particularly in secondary prevention. A convincing response has been obtained from the recent CORDIOPREV study (CORonary Diet Intervention with Olive oil and cardiovascular PREVention) which randomized ∼1000 patients with documented coronary artery disease to a Mediterranean Diet or a low-fat dietary intervention. In a 7-year follow-up, the Mediterranean Diet was superior to the low-fat diet in the prevention of major cardiovascular events.

Study Links
Quality Scores
SafetyNot Assessed
Efficacy70/10
Quality85/10
Citation Metrics
Total Citations5
Citations/Year2.5
Relative Citation Ratio1.46
NIH Percentile64.1%
Research Impact Scores
APT Score0.50
Weight Score2.79
Normalized Score0.65
Related Supplements
Cardiovascular prevention: Mediterranean or low-fat diet? | Panacea Index