Association of plant-based dietary patterns with metabolic syndrome: baseline results from the Persian Kavar cohort study (PKCS)

Abstract

Plant-based diets (PBDs) have gained a positive reputation among experts as a solution to combat the epidemic of MetS. A total of 2225 healthy Iranian individuals aged 35–70 years were considered eligible to be included in this cross-sectional investigation. Various dietary, anthropometric, and biochemical assessments were conducted using standard, valid methods/tools. Relevant PBD scores were calculated using three a posteriori indices, including the overall plant-based diet index (PDI), healthful PDI (hPDI), and unhealthful PDI (uPDI). Our findings showed that women with the highest adherence to hPDI had a lower chance of MetS. Also, participants in the top tertiles of hPDI were more likely to have a lower risk of low serum HDL-c and abnormal glucose homeostasis. Additionally, a significant increasing trend was observed for low serum HDL-c across tertiles of uPDI. Our observations suggest that healthful-rich plant foods may have a protective effect against MetS, especially in women.

Keywords:

• Plant-based diet
• MetS
• PKCS

Authors’ contributions

F.J, M.AK, M.H, and W.N; Contributed to data collection and writing the first draft. M.N, H.GH, and M.ASK; Contributed to all data and statistical analysis, and interpretation of data. MR.F, and M.A; Contributed to the research concept, supervised the work and revised the manuscript. All authors read and approved the final manuscript.

Ethical approval

The present study was approved by The Research Ethics Committee of Shiraz University of Medical Sciences, Shiraz, Iran (IR.SUMS.SCHEANUT.REC.1401.002)

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Availability of data and materials

Available on reasonable request.

Additional information

Funding

The present study was financially supported by Shiraz University of Medical Sciences (Grant number: 24823).