Diets: less meat more fish, so the heart works better

The old, healthy Mediterranean diet, rich in vegetables, extra virgin olive oil, cereals and fish, once again confirms itself as a “friend” of the heart and arteries. But above all we must not abuse red meats, whether processed or not. Those who tend to have a high consumption of these foods, in fact, over time tend to have the ventricles (i.e. the lower chambers of the heart) smaller, more rigid arterial vessels therefore potentially less ready to respond to stress and less heart muscle function. compared to those who limit themselves to occasional or in any case limited consumption. To say it is an English research conducted by Zahra raisi-estabragh of the Queen Mary University of London, presented at the congress ESC Preventive Cardiology 2021 of the European Society of Cardiology which for the first time did not consider the outcomes in terms of heart attack, decompensation and other heart diseases related to high meat consumption but went to evaluate what happens to heart arteries through sophisticated imaging techniques. The study looked at 19,408 people from the database of the UK Biobank and evaluated the associations of intake (these are self-declarations by the participants) of red meat and processed with the anatomy and function of the heart. Three measurements were made. First of all, we started from the observation with cardiovascular magnetic resonance of the main parameters of cardiac function, such as volume and pumping capacity of the ventricles. Then, thanks to the radiomics associated with this technique, information on the shape and consistency of the heart was extrapolated. finally, the elasticity of the arteries was measured, a fundamental parameter for assessing the adaptability of the vessels in the face of efforts or stress. The less rigid the arteries are, in fact, the healthier they are.

After also considering any elements such as age, social status, presence of risk factors such as sedentary lifestyle, overweight, smoking, hypertension, hypercholesterolemia or diabetes, the British experts saw that an increased intake of red and processed meat was associated with imaging measurements. worse than heart health, in all measures studied. Notably, individuals with higher meat intake had smaller ventricles, poorer heart function, and stiffer arteries, all indicators of poorer cardiovascular health. When these assessments were instead carried out in those who ate blue fish more frequently, on the other hand, an improvement in heart function and arterial elasticity was seen. According to the author of the study, the observed associations cannot be traced back exclusively to the action of the classic risk factors, from hypertension to increased cholesterol. Perhaps a role could also be played by the intestinal microbiota, obviously modulated by food, with the more marked production of metabolites that have been linked to a greater risk of heart disease. In any case, we are faced only with an observational study, which does not investigate the possible causes of the association.

“The study is certainly of great interest, also for the functional evaluations it proposes, and once again confirms the value of a diet mainly based on the model of the Mediterranean diet – he comments Andrea Ghiselli, President of the Italian Society of Food Sciences (Sisa). The dietary model should provide for a significant intake of calories from foods of plant origin, fruit, vegetables, cereals (preferably wholemeal), legumes, nuts, etc., with a low intake of foods of animal origin, including a preference for fish and dairy products. . Even without eliminating any food, these eating habits protect not only the heart, but the whole organism “.