A study by ibs.GRANADA reveals the multiple benefits that the Mediterranean diet brings to patients with lupus
Scientists from the ibs.GRANADA show that patients with lupus who follow a Mediterranean diet pattern experience improvements in the clinical course of the disease, have lower numbers of overweight / obesity and a lower cardiovascular risk.
The research group of Bases Physiopathology and Medical Therapeutics of the Biosanitary Research Institute of Granada (ibs.GRANADA) and the University of Granada (UGR) have demonstrated the multiple benefits that the Mediterranean diet brings to patients with systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE). ), one of the systemic autoimmune diseases that affects more people.
His work, published in the magazine Rheumatology, has revealed that lupus patients who follow a Mediterranean diet pattern have lower figures for overweight / obesity, lower cardiovascular risk and experience improvements in the clinical course of the disease (lower activity rates and accumulation of organic damage).
In addition, researchers have also observed that the consumption of certain foods is associated with more benefits for these patients. Thus, taking anti-inflammatory foods characteristic of the Mediterranean diet (such as olive oil, fruits, vegetables, fish and homemade stir-fries) and not consuming foods that are not part of it (such as processed meat products, sugary foods and industrial pastries) were significantly associated with less activity and organ damage in patients with lupus.
Cardiovascular problems
As explained by Gabriela Pocovi Gerardino, dietitian nutritionist, doctor from the University of Granada and first author of this work, “the exact cause of lupus is still unknown, but it is known that it results from the interaction between various factors such as a genetic predisposition; certain environmental factors (exposure to UV rays, toxins, lifestyle) or hormonal changes among others”. This complex interaction gives rise to an autoimmune response that produces inflammation and damage to many different organs and tissues. In addition, it should be noted that patients with lupus have a higher risk of cardiovascular problems.
In recent years, it has begun to be highlighted that diet could be playing an important role in the development and evolution of autoimmune diseases, as in other chronic diseases such as cardiovascular disease, obesity, diabetes or cancer .
Since 2017, this research group from the UGR and the Biosanitary Research Institute of Granada (ibs.GRANADA), led by Norberto Ortego Centeno, has been investigating the impact of diet on autoimmune diseases and particularly lupus. From the LyDIMED project "Lupus and Mediterranean Diet" (Pl-0523-2016 Ministry of Health, Andalusian Government), the objective was to investigate the influence of diet and specifically, the Mediterranean diet in chronicity, severity and cardiovascular risk in this autoimmune disease.
To do this, they have carried out a descriptive cross-sectional study in which the general lifestyle (dietary intake, body composition, level of physical activity, toxic habits) and adherence to the Mediterranean diet have been assessed. A group of 300 patients with lupus from various hospitals in Andalusia participated (San Cecilio University Hospital / Hospital Campus de la Salud (PTS) Granada, Jaén University Hospital Complex, Poniente-El Ejido Hospital).
Bearing in mind that most of the systemic autoimmune diseases, including lupus, are chronic and degenerative pathologies for which there is no curative treatment, but rather the treatment consists of controlling the existing symptoms, "these results are of great relevance and impact and lead us to advise that, together with medical treatment, nutritional advice could be very useful to improve the course of lupus and its comorbidities", concludes the UGR researcher.
Bibliographic reference:
Beneficial effect of Mediterranean diet on disease activity and cardiovascular risk in systemic lupus erythematosus patients: a cross-sectional study.
Gabriela Pocovi-Gerardino, María Correa-Rodríguez, José-Luis Callejas-Rubio, Raquel Ríos-Fernández, María Martín-Amada, María-Gracia Cruz-Caparro, Blanca Rueda-Medina, Norberto Ortego-Centeno.
Rheumatology (Oxford). 2021 Jan 5; 60 (1): 160-169
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.