Could A Mediterranean Diet Protect Against Atherosclerotic Plaques?

Adherence to a Mediterranean-style diet had a dose-dependent protective association with the risk of atherosclerotic plaques, according to a recent study.

In order to examine the effects of real-world adherence to a Mediterranean diet on risk of plaques, researchers assessed atherosclerotic plaques in carotid, femoral, and aorta territories in 2523 middle-aged participants without a history of cardiovascular disease in the Aragon Workers health Study. A 134-item food frequency questionnaire was used to determine participants’ score on the Alternative Mediterranean index (aMED).
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Overall, plaques were present in 1983 participants, and the average aMED score was 4.19 out of 9. Compared with individuals in the lowest aMED quartile, those in the highest quartile had significantly less plaques in femoral arteries, independent of all risk factors. Those in the highest quartile also had significantly reduced presence of plaques in the aorta after adjustment for age and sex, but the reduction did not retain significance after full adjustment. No differences were observed in the presence of carotid plaques.

Among smokers, those in the highest quartile saw a reduction of 61% in the presence of femoral arteries, compared with those in the lowest quartile. This suggests that the diet could protect against cardiovascular disease by preventing oxidation of atherogenic lipoproteins, according to the researchers.

—Michael Potts

Reference:

Gallego RM, Uzhova I, Moreno-Franco B, et al. Adherence to a Mediterranean diet is associated with the presence and extent of atherosclerotic plaques in middle-aged asymptomatic adults:

the AWHS study. [presented at the European Atherosclerosis Society 2017 Annual Congress. April 25, 2017. Prague, Czech Republic. Abstract 222.