Adherence to Mediterranean diet and health status: meta-analysis
OBJECTIVE: To systematically review all the prospective cohort studies that have analysed the relation between adherence to a Mediterranean diet, mortality, and incidence of chronic diseases in a primary prevention setting. DESIGN: Meta-analysisA meta-analysis is a method of summarizing the results of the same research purpose and comprehensiv... of prospective cohort studies.
DATA SOURCES: English and non-English publications in PubMed, Embase, Web of Science, and the CochraneCochrane is a global independent network of health practitioners researchers patient advocates and o... Central Register of Controlled Trials from 1966 to 30 June 2008. Studies reviewed Studies that analysed prospectively the association between adherence to a Mediterranean diet, mortality, and incidence of diseases; 12 studies, with a total of 1 574,299 subjects followed for a time ranging from three to 18 years were included.
RESULTS: The cumulative analysis among eight cohorts (514,816 subjects and 33,576 deaths) evaluating overall mortality in relation to adherence to a Mediterranean diet showed that a two point increase in the adherence score was significantly associated with a reduced risk of mortality (pooled relative risk 0.91, 95% confidence interval 0.89 to 0.94). Likewise, the analyses showed a beneficial role for greater adherence to a Mediterranean diet on cardiovascular mortality (pooled relative risk 0.91, 0.87 to 0.95), incidence of or mortality from cancer (0.94, 0.92 to 0.96), and incidence of Parkinson's disease and Alzheimer's disease (0.87, 0.80 to 0.96).
CONCLUSIONS: Greater adherence to a Mediterranean diet is associated with a significant improvement in health status, as seen by a significant reduction in overall mortality (9%), mortality from cardiovascular diseases (9%), incidence of or mortality from cancer (6%), and incidence of Parkinson's disease and Alzheimer's disease (13%). These results seem to be clinically relevant for public health, in particular for encouraging a Mediterranean-like dietary pattern for primary prevention of major chronic diseases.
Additional Info
-
Authors
Sofi F.; Cesari F.; Abbate R.; Gensini G.F.; Casini A. -
Issue
BMJ / pages a1344- / volume 337 -
Published Date
2008
Related items
- Heavy alcohol consumption, depression, their comorbidity and risk of all-cause and cause-specific mortality: a prospective cohort study
- The limitations of biomarkers in addressing bias in alcohol and cardiovascular disease research
- Global burden of 292 causes of death in 204 countries and territories and 660 subnational locations, 1990–2023: a systematic analysis for the Global Burden of Disease Study 2023
- A preliminary study of the physiological and perceptual effects of GLP-1 receptor agonists during alcohol consumption in people with obesity
- A preliminary study of the physiological and perceptual effects of GLP-1 receptor agonists during alcohol consumption in people with obesity