More evidence to support Mediterranean Diet

Spanish researchers said the Mediterranean diet may reduce waist circumference in a high-cardiovascular risk population, reversing the negative effect 12Ala allele carriers of the PPARgamma gene appeared to have (Br J Nutr. 2009). Researchers noted the beneficial effect of this dietary pattern seemed to be higher among type 2 diabetic subjects. A total of 774 high-risk subjects (aged 55 to 80 years) of the Prevención con Dieta Mediterránea (PREDIMED) randomized trial participated. There were three nutritional intervention groups: two were a Mediterranean-style diet and the third was a control group advised to follow a conventional low-fat diet. Carriers of the 12Ala allele allocated to the control group had a statistically significant higher change in waist circumference compared with wild-type subjects after two years of nutritional intervention. This adverse effect was not observed among 12Ala carriers allocated to both Mediterranean diet groups. In diabetic patients, a statistically significant interaction between Mediterranean diet and the 12Ala allele regarding waist circumference change was observed.