In a recent study published in the American Society of Nutrition, researchers determined a correlation between a Mediterranean diet and improved left ventricular function and structure in a multi-ethnic, cross-sectional study.
In medicine, certain diets have been recommended to reduce the risk of developing heart disease, as well as to mitigate the effects of other risk factors in the development of such diseases. It has widely been accepted that heart health can be improved by adopting a Mediterranean diet. This diet includes high levels of fruits, vegetables, legumes, and low levels of animal proteins. Moderate alcohol consumption is also characteristic of the Mediterranean diet.
Multi-ethnic research on Mediterranean diets and its benefits on the heart and vascular system is limited. In order to better understand how a Mediterranean diet affects heart health across various ethnicities, researchers conducted a cross-sectional study that examined the correlation between how closely an individual follows a Mediterranean diet, and various left ventricle (LV) variables (ie. LV mass, volume, mass-to-volume ratio, stroke volume, and ejection fraction). All of these variables can be used to determine an individual’s risk of developing cardiovascular diseases.
This Multi-Ethnic Study of Atherosclerosis included 4497 participants from a range of ethnicities, including white, African-American, Hispanic, and Chinese. All participants were from the United States and were between the ages of 45-85 years. They did not have any preexisting cardiovascular diseases. Participants were required to complete dietary questionnaires from which similarity scores to a Mediterranean diet were produced.
The results of this study indicate that individuals who closely follow a Mediterranean-type diet had a higher LV mass, which was associated with increased LV volume, higher stroke volume, and higher ejection fraction—all indicators of a stronger and healthier heart. Other results from the study show that participants who were in the top quartile of following a Mediterranean diet had a significantly lower heart rate than participants in the lowest quartile. This is consistent with better LV functioning.
The results of this study indicate that adopting a diet that is more similar to the Mediterranean diet can reduce the risk of heart disease in individuals, regardless of their ethnicity.
Written By: Nicole Pinto, HBSc