Mediterranean Diet and Cardiovascular Disease
Authors: Goulet, Julie1; Lapointe, Annie1; Lemieux, Simone1; Lamarche, Benoit1
Source: Current Nutrition & Food Science, Volume 2, Number 3, August 2006 , pp. 265-273(9)
Publisher: Bentham Science Publishers
- Free Content
- New Content
- Subscribed Content
- Free Trial Content
Abstract:
In the early 60s, data from the Seven Countries Study demonstrated that diet was a key risk factor for cardiovascular disease (CVD). Several epidemiological studies have since then provided further support to this concept by demonstrating that adherence to a Mediterranean food pattern was associated with a reduction in total and CVD mortality. The mechanisms underlying the cardioprotective effects of the Mediterranean diet (MEDdiet) remain unclear. Our objective was to provide an overview of how a Mediterranean food pattern modulates traditional and non-traditional risk factors for CVD. Data reviewed herein indicated that the MEDdiet may beneficially alter total cholesterol, LDL-C and TG levels, although this has not been a consistent finding. However, the impact of the MEDdiet on non-traditional risk factors such as a lower plasma apolipoprotein B concentrations, a lower high-sensitivity C-reactive protein and interleukin-6 levels, and a better endothelial function appears to be more consistent. In conclusion, adherence to a MEDdiet has been almost unequivocally associated with a decrease in mortality and this may be largely attributable to the more consistent impact of this food pattern on non-traditional risk factors for CVD rather than on traditional risk factors.Keywords: Mediterranean diet; cardiovascular disease; blood lipid profile; oxidation; inflammation; endothelial dysfunction
Document Type: Research article
DOI: 10.2174/157340106778017850
Affiliations: 1: Institute of Nutraceuticals and Functional Foods, 2440 Hochelaga Blvd, Laval University, Quebec, Quebec, Canada, G1K 7P4.
- Free Content
- New Content
- Subscribed Content
- Free Trial Content
Click here for Page Help