title: Cross-sectional assessment of nut consumption and obesity, metabolic syndrome and other cardiometabolic risk factors: the PREDIMED study.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Prospective studies have consistently suggested that nut consumption is inversely related to fatal and non-fatal coronary heart disease. Limited data are available on the epidemiological associations between nut intake and cardiometabolic risk factors.
  
  
  OBJECTIVE
  To evaluate associations between frequency of nut consumption and prevalence of cardiometabolic risk factors [obesity, metabolic syndrome (MetS), type-2 diabetes, hypertension, and dyslipidemia] in a Mediterranean population at high cardiovascular risk.
  
  
  METHODS
  Cross-sectional study of 7,210 men and women (mean age, 67 y) recruited into the PREDIMED study. MetS was defined by the harmonized ATPIII and IDF criteria. Diabetes and hypertension were assessed by clinical diagnosis and dyslipidemia (high triglycerides, low HDL-cholesterol, and hypercholesterolemia) by lipid analyses. Nut consumption was assessed using a validated food frequency questionnaire and categorized as <1, 1-3, and >3 servings/wk. Control of confounding was done with multivariate logistic regression.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Compared to participants consuming <1 serving/wk of nuts, those consuming >3 servings/wk had lower adjusted odds ratios (OR) for obesity (0.61, 95% confidence interval 0.54 to 0.68; P-trend <0.001), MetS (0.74, 0.65 to 0.85; P-trend<0.001), and diabetes (0.87, 0.78 to 0.99; P-trend = 0.043). Higher nut consumption was also associated with lower risk of the abdominal obesity MetS criterion (OR 0.68, 0.60 to 0.79; P-trend<0.001). No significant associations were observed for the MetS components high blood pressure, dyslipidemia, or elevated fasting glucose.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Nut consumption was inversely associated with the prevalence of general obesity, central obesity, MetS, and diabetes in subjects at high cardiovascular risk.
authors: Human Nutrition Unit, Hospital Universitari de Sant Joan de Reus, Institut d'Investigació Sanitària Pere Virgili (IISPV), Universitat Rovira i Virgili, Reus, Spain.
authors: Núria
authors: N
authors: Ibarrola-Jurado
authors: Mònica
authors: M
authors: Bulló
authors: Marta
authors: M
authors: Guasch-Ferré
authors: Emilio
authors: E
authors: Ros
authors: Miguel A
authors: MA
authors: Martínez-González
authors: Dolores
authors: D
authors: Corella
authors: Miquel
authors: M
authors: Fiol
authors: Julia
authors: J
authors: Wärnberg
authors: Ramón
authors: R
authors: Estruch
authors: Pilar
authors: P
authors: Román
authors: Fernando
authors: F
authors: Arós
authors: Ernest
authors: E
authors: Vinyoles
authors: Lluis
authors: L
authors: Serra-Majem
authors: Xavier
authors: X
authors: Pintó
authors: María-Isabel
authors: MI
authors: Covas
authors: Josep
authors: J
authors: Basora
authors: Jordi
authors: J
authors: Salas-Salvadó
mesh_terms: D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D002318:Cardiovascular Diseases / Q000150:complications / Q000453:epidemiology*; D016001:Confidence Intervals; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D005247:Feeding Behavior; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D019083:Mediterranean Region / Q000453:epidemiology; D024821:Metabolic Syndrome / Q000150:complications / Q000453:epidemiology*; D008875:Middle Aged; D015999:Multivariate Analysis; D009754:Nuts / Q000378:metabolism*; D009765:Obesity / Q000150:complications / Q000453:epidemiology*; D016017:Odds Ratio; D015995:Prevalence; D012307:Risk Factors