A PREVENTIVE EFFECT OF THE MEDITERRANEAN DIET ON CARDIOVASCULAR DISEASE RISK IN TYPE 2 DIABETICS (PREMEDIC TRIAL)

İSMAIL ÖZKAYA¹ , EMINE KIR BIÇER² , BÜLENT YARDIMCI³ , AYDIN TUNÇKALE⁴

¹ Kirklareli University, Health School, Department of Nutrition and Dietetics, Turkey - ² Beykent University, School of Health Science, Department of Nursing, Turkey - ³ Istanbul Florence Nightingale Hospital, Department of Internal Medicine, Division of Internal Medicine, Turkey - ⁴ İstanbul Bilim University, Department of Internal Medicine, Division of General Internal Medicine, Turkey

Introduction: Changes in lifestyle are recommended to all diabetics and consist of medical nutrition therapy and physical exercise programs. There has been growing evidence that the Mediterranean diet plays a role in medical nutrition therapy. This study aimed to determine the effects of the Mediterranean diet on the estimated 10-year risk of cardiovascular disease in type 2 diabetics.

Materials and methods: This trial is an open, nonrandomized clinical trial. Participants consumed a Mediterranean diet for 12 weeks. The cardiovascular disease risk score of each individual was calculated before and after the dietary intervention, without any change in his or her medical treatments throughout the study.

Results: A total of 254 patients were screened. Thirty-two patients were excluded from the study before and 20 patients after the dietary intervention. Therefore, 202 patients completed the study. We obtained a significant reduction in cardiovascular disease risk score of 24.5 ± 3.6% in men and 20.0 ± 3.5% in women (p < 0.001).

Conclusion: This study demonstrates the efficacy of the Mediterranean diet for reducing cardiovascular diseases risk in type 2 diabetics in 12 weeks.