The Mediterranean diet—foods traditionally consumed in coastal areas of Greece, Spain, and southern Italy—can help prevent and reverse metabolic syndrome (MS) and its components, according to a study published in the March 15 issue of the Journal of the American College of Cardiology.
MS comprises several medical disorders that increase the risk of developing cardiovascular disease and diabetes. It afflicts up to 25 percent of Americans, according to Medical News Today (MNT), and incidence increases with age.
The Mediterranean diet typically includes high consumption of olive oil, fish, legumes, fruit and vegetables, moderate consumption of dairy products, and low consumption of meat.
Researchers from Greece and Italy carried out a meta-analysis on data from more than half a million participants in 50 previous studies to determine the effect of the Mediterranean diet on MS and its individual components, including blood pressure, waist size, and blood sugar levels.
The team found an associated reduction in overall and cardiovascular mortality in the incidence of some types of cancer and death from cancer and in the incidence of type 2 diabetes, Parkinson’s, and Alzheimer’s diseases. Also, the diet affected participants’ waist measurement, HDL-cholesterol levels, triglycerides levels, blood pressure levels, and glucose metabolism, MNT reported.
Dr. Demosthenes Panagiotakos, associate professor in Biostatistics-Epidemiology of Nutrition, Department of Science of Dietetics – Nutrition at Harokopio University in Athens, said that prevention of the syndrome is important for a number of reasons.
“The prevalence of the metabolic syndrome is increasing rapidly throughout the world, in parallel with the increasing incidence of diabetes and obesity, and is now considered a major public health problem,” he said in a press release.
“Additionally, the metabolic syndrome is one of the main causes of cardiovascular disease (directly or indirectly) associated with personal and socio-economic burdens.”
“Our results add to the existing knowledge and further demonstrate the protective role and the significance that lifestyle factors, and mainly dietary habits, have when it comes to the development and progression of the metabolic syndrome,” Panagiotakos said.
The researchers concluded that the diet is of considerable public health importance, because it can “be easily adopted by all population groups and various cultures and cost-effectively serve for primary and secondary prevention of the MS and its individual components,” according to the study abstract.
MS comprises several medical disorders that increase the risk of developing cardiovascular disease and diabetes. It afflicts up to 25 percent of Americans, according to Medical News Today (MNT), and incidence increases with age.
The Mediterranean diet typically includes high consumption of olive oil, fish, legumes, fruit and vegetables, moderate consumption of dairy products, and low consumption of meat.
Researchers from Greece and Italy carried out a meta-analysis on data from more than half a million participants in 50 previous studies to determine the effect of the Mediterranean diet on MS and its individual components, including blood pressure, waist size, and blood sugar levels.
The team found an associated reduction in overall and cardiovascular mortality in the incidence of some types of cancer and death from cancer and in the incidence of type 2 diabetes, Parkinson’s, and Alzheimer’s diseases. Also, the diet affected participants’ waist measurement, HDL-cholesterol levels, triglycerides levels, blood pressure levels, and glucose metabolism, MNT reported.
Dr. Demosthenes Panagiotakos, associate professor in Biostatistics-Epidemiology of Nutrition, Department of Science of Dietetics – Nutrition at Harokopio University in Athens, said that prevention of the syndrome is important for a number of reasons.
“The prevalence of the metabolic syndrome is increasing rapidly throughout the world, in parallel with the increasing incidence of diabetes and obesity, and is now considered a major public health problem,” he said in a press release.
“Additionally, the metabolic syndrome is one of the main causes of cardiovascular disease (directly or indirectly) associated with personal and socio-economic burdens.”
“Our results add to the existing knowledge and further demonstrate the protective role and the significance that lifestyle factors, and mainly dietary habits, have when it comes to the development and progression of the metabolic syndrome,” Panagiotakos said.
The researchers concluded that the diet is of considerable public health importance, because it can “be easily adopted by all population groups and various cultures and cost-effectively serve for primary and secondary prevention of the MS and its individual components,” according to the study abstract.
