Mediterranean diet may reduce women’s heart disease risk by nearly 25%, study finds

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Adhering to a Mediterranean diet may reduce women’s risk of heart disease and death by nearly 25%, according to a new analysis of 16 studies.

“This study adds to what is already known about the cardiovascular benefits of the Mediterranean diet, but reiterates that it may be just as beneficial for women as it is for men.” said lead author Sarah Zaman, an associate professor at the University of Westmead. Center for Applied Research, University of Sydney, via email.

Heart disease is the leading cause of death for women and men worldwide. World Health Organization. Coronary artery disease claims more lives twice as many women In the UK, breast cancer will kill 1 in 5 women in the US in 2020. It was due to heart disease.

However, Zaman said very few heart studies have looked specifically at women.

“It has long been known that a Mediterranean-style diet is good for the heart, and it is heartening to confirm that this study suggests that the benefits remain when men and women are disaggregated.” In a statement, the Heart Foundation. She was not involved in research.

analysis, Published in Heart magazine on Wednesday, A combined study of the Mediterranean diet, with details about women separated from men. Women were awarded points for higher intakes of beneficial foods such as vegetables and fruits, whole grains, legumes, nuts, and seafood, and lower intakes of red and processed meats. All of these are part of the Mediterranean diet.

The study found that women who followed the Mediterranean diet most closely had a 24% lower risk of heart disease and a 23% lower risk of early death than those who followed the diet the least. Death from stroke was also reduced, but not statistically significant.

“We are excited to finally see data on women because these data have not been presented or are inadequate in previous studies that work similarly in women and men,” says cardiologist Roxana Mehran. said Dr. A professor of medicine, Mehran directs research and clinical trials in cardiovascular interventions at Mount Her-Sinai College of Medicine in New York City.

When the researchers calculated the numbers for men, they got almost the same results.

That’s not surprising, said Dr. David Katz, an expert in preventive medicine and lifestyle medicine and nutrition who was not involved in the study.

“So far, what we know about the benefits of the Mediterranean diet has not been gender-specific,” he says, noting that the cardiovascular benefits of a high-quality diet are the same regardless of gender. I added that it should.

“Thus, this is a ‘reconfirmation study’, showing that the observed benefits of the Mediterranean diet for men and women are statistically certain when only women are considered as the main subgroup. ‘ he said in an email.

There were limitations: all 16 studies were observational studies, could not demonstrate cause and effect, tended to rely on self-reports of food intake, and were inevitably affected by memory recall.

This limitation “is acknowledged by the authors, and while they recommend cautious interpretation of the study’s results, it also supports the need for more gender-specific studies,” Taylor said.

“Across men and women, a healthy lifestyle, including a balanced diet such as the Mediterranean-style diet, is associated with increased risk of developing heart and circulatory disease and other risk factors such as type 2 diabetes, obesity and hypertension. and high cholesterol,” she added.