March 17, 2023 – Women could have their very own reasons for now following the ever-popular Mediterranean weight loss plan: It appears to scale back the chance of heart disease and death in women.
Those who followed a strict Mediterranean weight loss plan had a 24% lower risk of heart disease and a 23% lower risk of death over time than someone who followed other diets. The weight loss plan emphasizes vegetables, fruits, whole grains, legumes, seafood, lean protein and healthy fats similar to olive oil and nuts.
“The Mediterranean diet is known for its health benefits, particularly for heart health, but most studies and research on diet and heart disease are primarily conducted in men,” said lead creator Anushriya Pant, a PhD student on the University of Australia's Westmead Applied Research Centre.
“In medical research, there are gender differences in the design of clinical trials,” she said. “This creates large gaps in clinical data that can potentially impact the development of health recommendations. Our work is a step toward closing this gap.”
In the new reportpublished within the magazine HeartPant and colleagues analyzed 16 studies published between 2006 and 2021 that included information on how closely people followed the Mediterranean weight loss plan, and either included only women or separated the outcomes by gender. The researchers excluded studies that looked only at specific components of the Mediterranean weight loss plan or combined it with other lifestyle-related aspects.
The studies, which largely focused on the United States and Europe, involved 722,495 adult women who had no prior history of heart disease and whose heart health was monitored for a median of 12.5 years.
Overall, individuals who followed a Mediterranean weight loss plan more strictly were less prone to experience heart problems – including heart failure, heart attacks and other serious cardiovascular events – and likewise death. Although the chance of stroke was also lower, this was not considered statistically significant.
Further evaluation showed that the chance was similarly reduced amongst women of various ethnic backgrounds who ate a Mediterranean weight loss plan. Women of European descent had a 24% lower risk of heart disease, and ladies of non-European descent (Asian, Native Hawaiian, and African American) had a 21% lower risk.
Researchers call for more gender-specific research on heart disease, including specific risk aspects related to menopause, pregnancy-related problems similar to preeclampsia and gestational diabetes, and autoimmune diseases which are more common in women, similar to systemic lupus.
Future studies must also examine the the explanation why the Mediterranean weight loss plan is related to fewer heart diseases and deaths, they said. The weight loss plan may reduce inflammation, boost antioxidants and promote the gut microbiome. It can be wealthy in helpful nutrients similar to polyphenols (organic compounds present in some vegetables and fruits), nitrates and omega-3 fatty acids, has a high fiber content and a low glycemic load.
“What we eat today has important implications for our cardiometabolic health in the years to come,” says Dr. Samia Mora, professor of drugs at Harvard Medical School and director of the Center for Lipid Metabolomics at Brigham and Women's Hospital.
Mora, who was not involved on this study, has studied the links between the Mediterranean weight loss plan and heart health. She and her colleagues found that ladies who follow the weight loss plan usually tend to have lower levels of inflammation, insulin resistance, body mass index and blood pressure.
“Women are often the main meal preparers and their eating habits influence other family members – especially children,” she said. “The results were impressive: fatal and non-fatal cardiovascular events fell by about a quarter. This is very similar to the benefit we see with statin therapy, a commonly used drug to lower cholesterol.”