In a massive study conducted in 80 countries and published in the European Heart Journal, it was found that emphasizing on the consumption of fruits, vegetables, whole-fat dairy, nuts, legumes, and fish can help reduce the risk of cardiovascular disease (CVD) and premature death.
Notably, adding or excluding unprocessed red meat or whole grains had minimal impact on these health outcomes.
Debunking the Low-Fat Myth
The general populace has been gravitating towards low-fat food options, guided by nutritional labels advocating lower fat and saturated fat.
Dr. Andrew Mente from McMaster University suggests refocusing on increasing protective foods, such as nuts, fish, and dairy.
Contrary to conventional wisdom, up to two servings of whole-fat dairy per day may be beneficial. In fact, whole-fat dairy might help ward off conditions like high blood pressure and metabolic syndrome.
The PURE Diet Score
The PURE diet score is founded on six foods linked with longer life spans:
- 2-3 servings of fruit/day
- 2-3 servings of vegetables/day
- 3-4 servings of legumes/week
- 7 servings of nuts/week
- 2-3 servings of fish/week
- 14 servings of dairy products (mostly whole fat, excluding butter or whipped cream)/week
Scores ranged from 0 (unhealthy) to 6 (healthy), with the top 50% of the population scoring the maximum of six.
Results and Implications
The study tracked 147,642 people from various countries for an average of 9.3 years. Those with the healthiest diet scores exhibited significantly reduced risks for death, CVD, myocardial infarction, and stroke.
These associations were corroborated in five separate studies, encompassing 96,955 CVD patients from 70 countries.
Dr. Mente emphasized the diversity of the study, which included high, middle, and low-income nations.
He highlighted that the connections between the PURE diet and health outcomes spanned across generally healthy individuals and those with CVD or diabetes.
Professor Salim Yusuf, the principal investigator of PURE, stressed that the most profound associations were found in regions with poorer diets dominated by refined carbs.
He believes a significant proportion of global deaths and CVD cases might be attributed to undernutrition, challenging prevalent beliefs.
Moving Forward
Dr. Dariush Mozaffarian from Tufts University, in an accompanying editorial, emphasized the urgent need for reevaluating dietary guidelines, particularly those that discourage the consumption of whole-fat dairy products.
He asserts that the findings of this study, combined with prior research, underscore the devastating global rise of diet-related chronic diseases and the power of protective foods to counter them.
It’s high time nutrition guidelines, policies, and interventions align with the latest scientific findings.
If you care about diet and health, please read diet to fight diabetic eye damage, and results showing these antioxidants could help reduce dementia risk.
For more information about diet, please read why vitamin K is so important for older people, and this snack food may harm your heart rhythm.
The study was published in European Heart Journal.
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