title: Dietary fibre intake is inversely associated with carotid intima-media thickness: a cross-sectional assessment in the PREDIMED study.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To assess the association between the intake of dietary fibre and carotid intima-media thickness (IMT) in a Mediterranean population at high cardiovascular risk.
  
  
  METHODS
  Baseline cross-sectional assessment of 457 men and women (average age 67 years) from two different Spanish centres of the PREDIMED trial. A previously validated food frequency questionnaire (137 food items) was administered by trained dieticians in a face-to-face interview. Mean common carotid IMT was measured using B-mode ultrasound imaging of the right and left carotid arteries by four certified sonographers who used a common protocol. Anthropometric and blood pressure measurements were performed and samples of fasting blood were obtained. Participants were categorized into four groups (roughly quartiles: < or =21; >21 to < or =25; >25 to < or =31 and >31 g/day) of energy-adjusted intake of dietary fibre. Multiple linear regression models were used to adjust for age, sex, centre, smoking, body mass index, diabetes, blood pressure, lipid levels and statin use.
  
  
  RESULTS
  In the crude analyses, energy-adjusted fibre intake showed a significant inverse correlation with IMT (r=-0.27, P<0.001). In multivariate analyses, a modest, though statistically significant (P=0.03) inverse association between energy-adjusted fibre intake and IMT was also found. The multivariate-adjusted difference in average IMT was -0.051 mm (95% confidence interval: -0.094 to-0.009, P=0.02) for participants whose intake was >35 g/day, (n=47) when compared with those whose intake was <25 g/day (n=224).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Our results suggest that high fibre intake is inversely associated with carotid atherosclerosis.
authors: Primary Care, Servicio Navarro de Salud, Osasunbidea, Pamplona, Spain.
authors: P
authors: P
authors: Buil-Cosiales
authors: P
authors: P
authors: Irimia
authors: E
authors: E
authors: Ros
authors: M
authors: M
authors: Riverol
authors: R
authors: R
authors: Gilabert
authors: E
authors: E
authors: Martinez-Vila
authors: I
authors: I
authors: Núñez
authors: J
authors: J
authors: Diez-Espino
authors: M A
authors: MA
authors: Martínez-González
authors: M
authors: M
authors: Serrano-Martínez
mesh_terms: D000368:Aged; D002318:Cardiovascular Diseases / Q000517:prevention & control*; D002339:Carotid Arteries / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging / Q000473:pathology*; D038441:Diet, Mediterranean; D004043:Dietary Fiber / Q000008:administration & dosage*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D016014:Linear Models; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D015999:Multivariate Analysis; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D017539:Tunica Intima / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging / Q000473:pathology*; D014463:Ultrasonography