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Healthy
Diet, Healthy Heart
NEW
YORK (Reuters Health) - In findings that underscore the importance
of eating healthy for long life, two new studies reveal that fruits,
vegetables and a diet low in fat can protect against heart disease.
The first
study of more than 84,000 female healthcare workers aged 34 to
59 and more than 42,000 male healthcare workers aged 40 to 75
found that just one additional daily serving of fruit or vegetables
lowered the risk of heart disease by 4%. Vegetables such as spinach,
kale and broccoli, and fruits such as oranges and grapefruits
offered the most protection, results show.
``Our data
support a protective effect of greater consumption of fruits and
vegetables, in particular green leafy vegetables and vitamin C-rich
fruits and vegetables, against risk for coronary heart disease,''
according to Dr. Kaumudi J. Joshipura and colleagues from Harvard
University in Boston, Massachusetts.
Coronary heart
disease, which occurs when arteries that carry blood to the heart
become blocked, is the leading cause of death in the US.
The investigators
reviewed data from two large studies examining factors affecting
the health of middle-aged women and men. The findings, published
in the June 19th issue of the Annals of Internal Medicine, show
that people who ate the most fruits and vegetables were older,
had healthier lifestyles overall and smoked less. Still, the relationship
between high fruit and vegetable intake and low risk of heart
disease remained regardless of exercise or smoking habits and
vitamin use.
Increased
fruit and vegetable consumption was also found to protect people
with type 2 diabetes against heart attack, a potential complication
of the disease.
Fruits and
vegetables contain myriad compounds that have been linked with
improved health. Fiber, potassium, folate and antioxidants have
all been shown to lower heart disease risk, for example.
``The mechanisms
through which vegetables and fruits protect against cardiovascular
disease are likely to be multiple,'' Joshipura and colleagues
conclude.
Indeed, a
second study published in the journal reports diets low in fat
and rich in fruits, vegetables, nuts and whole grains improved
blood flow and prevented damage to the cells that line the arteries
in a group of men with high cholesterol. Damage to these particular
cells may lead to atherosclerosis--a build-up of plaque inside
arteries that inhibits the flow of blood.
In the study,
22 men followed a diet high in saturated fat for 4 weeks and then
switched to a low-fat, low-cholesterol diet for 28 days. The low-fat
diet was either the National Cholesterol Education Program diet,
which is recommended for people with slightly to moderately high
cholesterol; or a ``Mediterranean'' diet rich in grains, nuts,
vegetables and fruits and low in meat.
Both diets
resulted in reduced cholesterol and LDL (''bad'') cholesterol
levels, but the Mediterranean diet had the added effect of protecting
the cells that line arteries from damage.
``The beneficial
effects of dietary intervention are not limited solely to its
action on (fat) levels but may also influence other...mechanisms,
opening up new perspectives for its protective effect on atherosclerosis,''
Dr. Francisco Fuentes of Hospital Universitario Reina Sofia in
Cordoba, Spain, and colleagues conclude.
SOURCE:
Annals of Internal Medicine 2001;134:1106-1114, 1115-1119.
Reference
Source 89
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