Inflammatory Foods Can Decrease The Rate Of Heart Disease

Summary: A study assessed that diets that are rich in red meat, refined sugars and sugary beverages could cause inflammation in the body, increasing the risk of heart problems and stroke when compared to anti-inflammatory foods. Another study appraises that there are positive effects of eating walnuts, an anti-inflammatory food on decreasing inflammation and risk of heart disease. According to a study published in the Journal of the American College of Cardiology,. A separate study published in the same journal appraises that there are positive effects of eating walnuts, an anti-inflammatory food, on decreasing inflammation and the risk of heart disease. Chronic inflammation has been shown to have a significant role in the development of heart disease and stroke. The early and late stages of atherosclerosis are associated with specific inflammatory biomarkers, including interleukins, chemokines, and adhesion molecules. Various studies have established that diet has a significant impact on inflammation levels in the body. Anti-inflammatory diet patterns, including the consumption of olive oil, nuts, whole grains, fruits, vegetables, seafood, and a light dairy diet, help maintain lower concentrations of inflammatory biomarkers and reduce the risk of heart disease. There has been less research concentrated on the matter that long-term adherence to pro-inflammatory diets can correlate with high rates of heart disease and stroke. The participants in the study are men and women from the Nurses’ Health Studies I and II, which began in 1986 and included a 32-year follow-up. Researchers have excluded the participants who have a previous heart disease history, cancer, and those with missing dietary intake information. Excluding the above-mentioned participants, over 210,000 participants were included in the analysis. Participants took part in a survey every four years to assess their dietary intake. Jun Li, MD, PhD, lead author of the study and research scientist in the department of nutrition at Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, said, “By using an empirically-developed, food-based dietary index to evaluate levels of inflammation associated with dietary intake, we found that dietary patterns with higher inflammatory potential were associated with an increased rate of cardiovascular disease. Our study is among the first to link a food-based dietary inflammatory index with long-term risk of cardiovascular disease.” The food-based pro-inflammatory dietary index is based on 18 pre-defined food groups that together show the strongest associations with an increase in inflammatory biomarkers. All other risk factors were controlled, including BMI, physical activity, family history of heart disease, and multivitamin use. The statistics have shown that the participants consuming pro-inflammatory diets were at a 46% higher risk of heart disease and 28% higher risk of stroke in comparison to those participants who were consuming anti-inflammatory diets. The researchers suggest that an anti-inflammatory diet with higher levels of antioxidants and fibre helps to fight inflammation. Common anti-inflammatory foods include Green leafy vegetables, yellow vegetables, whole grains, coffee, tea, and others. The researchers also recommended limiting the intake of refined sugars, grains, fried foods, soda, processed milk, and red meat. These foods are significant contributors to the pro-inflammatory dietary index. Ramon Estruch, MD, PhD, senior consultant in the department of internal medicine at Hospital Clinic in Barcelona, Spain, and author of an accompanying editorial comment, said, “A better knowledge of health protection provided by different foods and dietary patterns, mainly their anti-inflammatory properties, should provide the basis for designing even healthier dietary patterns to protect against heart disease. He also added, “When choosing foods in our diet, we should indeed beware of their pro-inflammatory and anti-inflammatory potential!” Anti-Inflammatory Foods Like Walnuts Reduce Rate of Heart Disease In a parallel study, researchers found that incorporating anti-inflammatory foods, such as walnuts, may improve inflammatory biomarkers. Various studies have shown that regular nut consumption is associated with a lower risk of heart disease and reduced cholesterol levels; however, there has been limited research to demonstrate a direct link between nut consumption and decreased inflammation in the body. A total of 634 participants were assigned to either a diet without walnuts or a diet including walnuts (approximately 30-60 grams per day). The assessment was conducted after a two-year follow-up period. Participants who ate a diet with walnuts showed a reduced level of inflammation in the body in every 6 out of 10 inflammatory biomarker tests performed. “The anti-inflammatory effect of long-term consumption of walnuts demonstrated in this study provides novel mechanistic insight for the benefit of walnut consumption on heart disease risk beyond that of cholesterol-lowering,” said Montserrant Cofán, PhD, lead author of the study and a researcher at the August Pi i Sunyer Biomedical Research Institute in Barcelona, Spain. Journal Reference: Jun Li, Dong Hoon Lee, Jie Hu, Fred K. Tabung, Yanping Li, Shilpa N. Bhupathiraju, Eric B. Rimm, Kathryn M. Rexrode, JoAnn E. Manson, Walter C. Willett, Edward L. Giovannucci, Frank B. Hu. Dietary Inflammatory Potential and Risk of Cardiovascular Disease Among Men and Women in the U.S.. Journal of the American College of Cardiology, 2020; 76 (19): 2181 DOI: 10.1016/j.jacc.2020.09.535