A lifestyle based on the Mediterranean per diem expenses , calorie reduction and physical activity may be associated with a lower risk of atrial fibrillation.

Following a lifestyle based on a Mediterraneanper diem expenses enriched with olive oil reduces the risk of atrial fibrillation or cardiac arrhythmia, a condition that in recent years has become a major public health problem affecting a high percentage of the population. In 2020, around 50 million people suffered from this heart condition and it is considered a risk factor for ischemic stroke, heart failure, hospitalization and death.

As a result of this scientific evidence, based on the results of the PREDIMED study, researchers in the field of epidemiology, prevention and public health, including University of Navarra professors Miguel Ángel González-Martínez and Estefanía Toledo and researchers from CIBEROBN and IdiSNA, proposed a new hypothesis for research in which they seek to determine whether adding physical activity, calorie reduction and behavioral therapy to a lifestyle based on the Mediterranean per diem expenses can reduce the risk of atrial fibrillation.

5-year intervention program

To answer this new question, the researchers developed a 5-year lifestyle intervention program (LPI) involving a total of 532 men and women who were overweight and obese and had metabolic syndrome at the start of the program.

The objectives of the study were, on the one hand, to evaluate the effect of the IEV program on the concentrations of blood biomarkers related to atrial fibrillation pathways. On the other hand, to evaluate the proportion mediated by each component of the intervention that contributed to the relationship between the IEV program and biomarker concentrations. To this end, the measurement of those markers that jeopardize the proper functioning of the heart and are associated with an increased risk of atrial fibrillation (arrhythmia or irregular heartbeat), such as myocardial damage, inflammation, oxidative stress and other disorders in the structure of the atrium, was carried out.

These results show that the promotion of a lifestyle based on a Mediterranean diet per diem expenses , olive oil consumption, weight loss, and increased physical activity is associated with long-term benefits in the risk of atrial fibrillation. This study has been published in the Journal of Clinical Medicine.