Study: Fruit, Fish and Nut Diet Reduces Heart Attack Risk

19 Mar 2014 --- A study involving a group of men and women aged over 40 were found to reduce their risk of heart disease by up to a third when they adapted their diet, according to researchers.

The study looked at blood pressure, artery health and other heart disease risk factors such as high cholesterol. One group ate a diet that was high in saturated far, salt and sugar, and also low in fibre, oily fish and fruit and vegetables. The other diet had higher amounts of fruit and vegetables and lower amounts of animal fat, they included oily fish once a week, replaced refined with wholegrain cereals, and restricted sugar and salt intake. 

This latter group, the ‘healthy diet’ group, were also asked to replace cakes and biscuits with fruit and nuts and were also supplied with cooking oils and spreads which were high in mono-unsaturated fats. People in this group saw significant falls in blood pressure, and average reduction in hearat rate of 1.8 beats per minute and an 8% fall in cholesterol levels. 

“Our findings apply to middle-aged men and older people without existing health problems,” explained professor Tom Sanders from King’s College, London. “This is important because most heart attacks and strokes occur in those not identified as being at high risk.”

In addition, the study also showed that the average body weight within the group fell by 1.3kg (2.8lbs) while that of ‘traditional diet’ participants rose by 0.6kg (1.3lbs) after 12 weeks.

“We show that adherence to current dietary guidelines which advocate a change in dietary pattern from the traditional British diet (high in saturated fat, salt and sugar, low in fibre, oily fish and fruit and vegetables) would substantially lower that risk,” he said.