- ALLERGY, RESPIRATORY
- Air Quality Better in Northeast, Midwest
- Traffic, Dust Linked to Asthma in Kids
- Childhood Food Allergies on the Rise
- ALTERNATIVE MEDICINE
- Meditation, Yoga Might Switch Off Stress Genes
- Taking the Mystery Out of Hypnotherapy
- U.S. Spends Billions On Alternative Medicine
- ANIMAL CARE
- Separation Anxiety, Canine-Style
- Beware of Dog Bites
- 'Comfort Dogs' Come to Emotional Rescue
- BONES & JOINTS
- Barefoot Lifestyle Has Its Dangers
- Heart Failure Raises Risk of Fractures
- In Elderly Women, Hip Fractures Often Follow Arm Breaks
- CANCER
- No Verdict Yet on Grape Seed Extract vs. Breast Cancer
- Herb May Counter Liver Damage From Chemo
- Multiple Screening Strategy Boosts Cervical Cancer Detection
- CAREGIVING
- Health Tip: Benefitting From Adult Day Care
- What Moms Learned May Be Passed to Offspring
- Child's Food Allergies Take Toll on Family Plans
- CIRCULATORY SYSTEM
- Grapefruit-Heavy Diet Helped Spur Dangerous Clot
- Secondhand Smoke Quickly Affects Blood Vessels
- Night Shift Work Hard on the Heart
- COSMETIC
- Get Sugared!.... Its a sweet choice for hair removal
- Gum Chewing May Cut Craving for Snacks
- What to Do If You Have Unsightly Veins
- DENTAL, ORAL
- Acupuncture May Ease Anxiety Over Dental Work
- Mom's Vitamin D Levels Affect Baby's Dental Health
- Gum Care Helps Control Type 2 Diabetes and Its Complications
- DIABETES
- Drug May Not Help Diabetes-Related Eye Damage
- Laughter May Lower Heart Attack Risk in Diabetics
- Boosting Vitamin D Can Do a Heart Good
- DIET, NUTRITION
- Even in 'Last Supper,' Portion Sizes Have Grown
- Successful Weight Loss Shows Unique Brain Patterns
- Mercury in Fish Linked to High Blood Pressure
- DISABILITIES
- Review Finds Marijuana May Help MS Patients
- Could Your Cell Phone Help Shield You From Alzheimer's?
- ENVIRONMENTAL HEALTH
- Household Insecticides May Be Linked to Autoimmune Diseases
- Rainy Areas in U.S. Show Higher Autism Rates
- Air Pollution May Cause Appendicitis: Study Reveals
- EYE CARE, VISION
- Eye Problems, Hearing Loss May Be Linked
- Time Teaches Brain to Recognize Objects
- Diabetic Hispanics Missing Out on Eye Exams
- FITNESS
- Exercise Helps Reduce Falls in Young and Old
- Walk Long, Slow and Often to Help the Heart
- Meditation May Help Put Primary Insomnia to Bed
- GASTROINTESTINAL PROBLEMS
- HRT Use Raises Risk of Stomach Trouble
- New Guidelines Issued for Management of IBS
- Soothing Imagery May Help Rid Some Kids of Stomach Pain
- GENERAL HEALTH
- Soluble Fiber, But Not Bran, Soothes Irritable Bowel
- Research Shows Genetic Activity of Antioxidants
- More Whole Grains May Mean Less Fat
- HEAD & NECK
- Ski Helmets Encouraged for All
- Zen May Thicken Brain, Thwart Pain
- Many Children Will Outgrow Headaches
- HEALTH & TECHNOLOGY
- E-Mailing Your Way to Healthier Habits
- Save Your Aging Brain, Try Surfing The Web
- Study Suggests Link Between Cell Phones and Brain Tumors
- HEART & CARDIOVASCULAR
- Women Who Run May Benefit From Extra Folic Acid
- Too-Low Blood Pressure Can Also Bring Danger
- Soy Protein Doesn't Lower Cholesterol
- INFECTIOUS DISEASE
- The HPV Vaccine: Preventative Medicine or Human Sacrifice?
- Dry Weather Boosts Odds of Flu Outbreaks
- More Medicinal Uses for Pomegranate
- KID'S HEALTH
- Keep Safety in Mind While Your Kids Are Cooling Off in the Water
- Scorpion Anti-Venom Speeds Children's Recovery
- Health Tip: Back Pain in Children
- MEN'S HEALTH
- Varicose Veins May Mask Larger Problem
- Noise Hurts Men's Hearing More, Study Shows
- Low Vitamin D Levels May Boost Men's Heart Attack Risk
- MENTAL HEALTH
- The 3LS Wellness Program for Reversing Chronic Symptoms and Creating Lasting Health
- Heal Your Life® Tips for Living Well
- Music Soothes Anxiety as Well as Massage Does
- PREGNANCY
- Yoga's Benefits Outweigh Risks for Pregnant Women
- Breast-Feeding May Protect a Woman's Heart
- Music of Mozart Soothes the Preemie Baby
- SENIORS
- Memory Loss Help from Brain Supplement Prevagen
- Seniors Cope With Sleep Loss Better Than Young Adults
- Healthy Diet Could Cut Alzheimer's Disease Risk
Review Confirms Links Between Diet, Heart Health
By eHolistic.com Published: 04/13/2009
MONDAY, April 13 (HealthDay News) -- Vegetables, nuts and the so-called "Mediterranean" diet are heart-friendly, while trans fats and foods with a high glycemic index can harm your heart, say researchers who reviewed 189 studies published between 1950 and 2007.
The studies included 146 prospective cohort studies (which examined past habits of participants) and 43 randomized controlled trials (volunteers were randomly assigned to consume a certain kind of diet).
"The relationship between dietary factors and coronary heart disease has been a major focus of health research for almost half a century," wrote Andrew Mente, of the Population Health Research Institute, and colleagues. But even though there are many published studies on the topic, "the strength of the evidence supporting valid associations has not been evaluated systemically in a single investigation."
When they pooled the findings from the studies and applied a predefined algorithm, Mente and his team identified "strong evidence of a causal relationship for protective factors, including intake of vegetables, nuts and monosaturated fatty acids and Mediterranean, prudent and high-quality dietary patterns, and harmful factors, including intake of trans-fatty acids and foods with a high glycemic index or load and a Western dietary pattern," the researchers wrote.
"Among these dietary exposures, however, only a Mediterranean dietary pattern has been studied in randomized controlled trials and significantly associated with coronary heart disease," they said.
The Mediterranean died is typically loaded with fruits, vegetables, grains and olive oil.
The researchers also found modest evidence of a causal relationship between heart health and several other foods and vitamins, such as fish, omega-3 fatty acids from marine sources, folate, whole grains, alcohol, fruits, fiber, dietary vitamins E and C and beta carotene. There was weak evidence of a causal relationship between heart health and vitamin E and C in supplement form, saturated and polyunsaturated fatty acids and total fats, alpha-linoleic acid, meat, eggs and milk.
"The modest or weak evidence of these dietary exposures is mostly consistent with the findings of randomized controlled trials, although randomized controlled trials have yet to be conducted for several factors," the study authors wrote.
"Taken together, these findings support a causal relationship between only a few dietary exposures and coronary heart disease, whereas the evidence of most individual nutrients or foods is too modest to be conclusive," the team said.
The review was published in the April 13 issue of the journal Archives of Internal Medicine.
"Although investigations of dietary components may help to shed light on mechanisms behind the benefits of dietary patterns, it is unlikely that modifying the intake of a few nutrients or foods would substantially influence coronary outcomes," Mente and colleagues concluded. "Our findings support the strategy of investigating dietary patterns in cohort studies and randomized controlled trials for common and complex chronic diseases such as coronary heart disease."
More information
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has more about eating for a healthy heart.
-- Robert Preidt
SOURCE: JAMA/Archives journals, news release, April 13, 2009
Last Updated: April 13, 2009
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