Diet Cuts Diabetes Risk Without Calorie Restrictions

Switching to a Mediterranean diet enriched with extra-virgin olive oil—without restricting calories or increasing exercise—significantly reduces the risk of developing diabetes in people with high cardiovascular risk.

In order to study the efficacy of dietary interventions not accompanied by caloric restriction, researchers at the Universitat Rovira i virgili in Reus, Spain followed 3541 adults between 55 and 80 years old through the Prevencion con Dieta Mediterranea trial over 4.1 years. 

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Participants had at least 3 cardiovascular risk factors at the start of the study, but no cardiovascular disease, and were randomly assigned to either a control, low-fat diet, or a Mediterranean diet supplemented with extra-virgin olive oil or mixed nuts. 

No restrictions were placed on caloric intake, and participants were not required to increase physical activity. Cardiovascular risk factors included smoking, hypertension, hypercholesterolemia, low LDL cholesterol, or overweight. 

Those randomized to the Mediterranean diet attended quarterly training sessions and were given meal plans, seasonal shopping lists, and advice on adherence.

Mediterranean diet supplemented with extra-virgin olive oil was found to be associated with a 40% lower likelihood of developing Type 2 diabetes even without weight loss compared with mixed-nut supplementation and low-fat control diets.

Adherence was also significantly higher among participants in the Mediterranean groups (P<0.01) than in the control group.

Overall, 80 participants in the olive oil group, 92 in the mixed nut group, and 101 in the control group developed diabetes during follow-up.

The study was published online in Annals of Internal Medicine.

 –Michael Potts

Reference

Salvado JS, Bullo M, Estruch R, et al.  Prevention of Diabetes With Mediterranean Diets: A Subgroup Analysis of a Randomized Trial. Ann Intern Med. 2014;160(1):1-10-10. doi:10.7326/M13-1725