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Endocrine Abstracts (2014) 35 S29.1 | DOI: 10.1530/endoabs.35.S29.1

ECE2014 Symposia (1) (1 abstracts)

Mediterranean diet in the prevention of cardiovascular disease

J Salas-Salvadó


Rovira i Virgili University, Reus, Spain.


Several observational cohort studies and one secondary prevention trial (the Lyon diet study) have shown an inverse association between adherence to the Mediterranean diet and cardiovascular risk. The PREDIMED study is a multicenter, randomized, nutritional intervention trial designed to assess the effects of the Mediterranean diet (MedDiet) on incident cardiovascular diseases (CVDs), in the context of primary prevention of CVD. Participants (7447 elderly individuals at high risk of CVD) were randomized into three dietary intervention groups: MedDiet supplemented with extra-virgin olive oil (EVOO), MedDiet supplemented with mixed nuts, and control diet (advice on a low-fat diet). After 4.8 years, 288 major CVD events occurred; hazard ratios were 0.70 (95% CI, 0.53–0.91) for the MedDiet+EVOO and 0.70 (CI, 0.53–0.94) for the MedDiet+nuts compared to the control group. Respective hazard ratios for incident diabetes (273 cases) among 3541 non-diabetic participants were 0.60 (0.43–0.85) and 0.82 (0.61–1.10) compared to the control group. In both MedDiet interventions a decreased risk of peripheral artery disease was also observed compared to the control diet. After 1 year follow-up, participants in the MedDiet+nuts group showed a significant 13.7% reduction in prevalence of metabolic syndrome, compared to reductions of 6.7 and 2.0% in the MdeDiet+EVOO and control groups, respectively. Analyses of intermediate markers of cardiovascular risk demonstrated beneficial effects of the MedDiets on blood pressure, lipid profiles, insulin resistance, and other emergent CVD risk factors such us peripheral inflammation, oxidative stress, and carotid atherosclerosis. The PREDIMED trial showed that a high-unsaturated fat and antioxidant-rich dietary pattern such as the MedDiet, supplemented with EVOO or nuts, appears to be optimal for the prevention of diabetes and cardiovascular events in elderly individuals at high cardiovascular risk.

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