Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
Review
. 2016 Mar 15;8(3):168.
doi: 10.3390/nu8030168.

The Effect of the Traditional Mediterranean-Style Diet on Metabolic Risk Factors: A Meta-Analysis

Marissa Garcia  1 , Jessica D Bihuniak  2 , Julia Shook  3 , Anne Kenny  4 , Jane Kerstetter  5 , Tania B Huedo-Medina  6
Affiliations
Review

The Effect of the Traditional Mediterranean-Style Diet on Metabolic Risk Factors: A Meta-Analysis

Marissa Garcia et al. Nutrients. .

Abstract

The Mediterranean-style diet (MedSD) has gained attention for its positive effects on health outcomes, including metabolic risk factors. However, it is unknown as to which components of MedSD interventions are most beneficial in reducing risk. The objective of this meta-analysis was to obtain effect sizes for metabolic risk factors and explain the variability across the current literature based on study design, sample, and diet characteristics. Six electronic databases were searched from inception until 9 February 2016. Data from 29 studies (N = 4133) were included. There were significant effects in favor of the MedSD for waist circumference, triglycerides, blood glucose, systolic blood pressure, and diastolic blood pressure (d+ = -0.54; d+ = -0.46; d+ = -0.50; d+ = -0.72; d+ = -0.94, respectively). The MedSD was significantly beneficial when the intervention was longer in duration, was conducted in Europe, used a behavioral technique, and was conducted using small groups. The traditional MedSD had significant beneficial effects on five of the six metabolic risk factors. Results from this study provide support for population specific dietary guideline for metabolic risk reduction.

Keywords: Mediterranean diet; meta-analysis; metabolic syndrome.

PubMed Disclaimer

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
PRISMA Figure outlining the process of study identification, screening, eligibility, and inclusion.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

References

    1. Grundy S.M., Cleeman J.I., Daniels S.R., Donato K.A., Eckel R.H., Franklin B.A., Gordon D.J., Krauss R.M., Savage P.J., Smith S.C., Jr., et al. Diagnosis and management of the metabolic syndrome: An American Heart Association/National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute scientific statement. Curr. Opin. Cardiol. 2006;21:1–6. doi: 10.1097/01.hco.0000200416.65370.a0. - DOI - PubMed
    1. Grundy S.M., Brewer H.B., Jr., Cleeman J.I., Smith S.C., Jr., Lenfant C., National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute. American Heart Association Definition of metabolic syndrome: Report of the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute/American Heart Association conference on scientific issues related to definition. Arterioscler. Thromb. Vasc. Biol. 2004;24:e13–e18. doi: 10.1161/01.ATV.0000111245.75752.C6. - DOI - PubMed
    1. Ervin R.B. National Health Statistics Reports. Center for Disease Control and Prevention; Hyattsville, MD, USA: 2009. Prevalence of metabolic syndrome among adults 20 years of age and over, by sex, age, race and ethnicity, and body mass index: United States, 2003–2006; pp. 1–7. - PubMed
    1. Sofi F., Abbate R., Gensini G.F., Casini A. Accruing evidence on benefits of adherence to the Mediterranean diet on health: An updated systematic review and meta-analysis. Am. J. Clin. Nutr. 2010;92:1189–1196. doi: 10.3945/ajcn.2010.29673. - DOI - PubMed
    1. Babio N., Toledo E., Estruch R., Ros E., Martinez-Gonzalez M.A., Castaner O., Bullo M., Corella D., Aros F., Gomez-Gracia E., et al. PREDIMED Study Investigators Mediterranean diets and metabolic syndrome status in the PREDIMED randomized trial. CMAJ. 2014;186:E649–E657. doi: 10.1503/cmaj.140764. - DOI - PMC - PubMed

LinkOut - more resources