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Dear Colleagues and Friends,
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There is a global consensus that diet is a primary actor for health promotion worldwide, therefore, initiatives in this sphere should also align with environmental preservation. There is an enormous number of experimental and clinical studies related to the Mediterranean diet and its components in relation to cardiovascular disease in particular. In a cross-sectional study carried out in a Mediterranean cohort of 23,729 workers, 51.3% of the participants showed good adherence to the Mediterranean diet. The participants’ age was correlated with higher prevalence of abdominal obesity, overweight/obesity, diabetes, arterial hypertension and metabolic syndrome. The adjusted multivariate analysis showed a significant and inverse association between an acceptable Mediterranean diet adherence (>9/14 points) and the prevalence of central obesity, dyslipidemia and metabolic syndrome.
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On the other hand, endothelial function is a key factor for the development of atherosclerosis and predictive of cardiovascular disease severity and recurrence. Despite the biological plausibility of protecting endothelium function through diet, there is still no consensus on a single recommended dietary pattern. An analysis of the CORDIOPREV randomized controlled trial has proposed the Mediterranean diet for its impact on endothelial function compared to a low-fat diet. The results suggest that it was associated with vascular homeostasis, even for patients with severe endothelial dysfunction.
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Genetic and lifestyle factors, especially diet, are significant determinants of type 2 diabetes. Data from systematic reviews and meta-analyses of randomized controlled trials suggest that diet quality (low calories and low-fat diet) and/or enhanced level of physical activity can delay or prevent the onset of type 2 diabetes. The data comes from an umbrella review that comprised a total of 60 reviews and meta-analysis of diet and type 2 diabetes showed that healthy dietary patterns such as Mediterranean and Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension (DASH) diets, as well as a high consumption of whole grains, low-fat dairy products, yogurt, olive oil, chocolate, fiber, magnesium, and flavonoid significantly reduced the risk of type 2 diabetes.
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