Effects of cardiac rehabilitation and diet counselling on adherence to the Mediterranean lifestyle in patients after myocardial infarction

Novaković, Marko (author), Rajkovič, Uroš (author), Košuta, Daniel (author), Tršan, Jure (author), Fras, Zlatko (author), Jug, Borut (author)

Adherence to the Mediterranean lifestyle—as captured by the Medlife Index Questionnaire (i.e., encompassing a Mediterranean diet as well as other aspects of healthy living, such as food preparation, physical activity, and socializing)—has been associated with reduced cardiovascular events in healthy individuals. In the present study, we sought to determine the adherence to, and the effect of comprehensive cardiac rehabilitation on, Mediterranean lifestyle adherence in patients after myocardial infarction. We included 121 patients (mean age, 55 years; women, 37%) undergoing comprehensive cardiac rehabilitation—i.e., exercise training 3 times per week for 12 weeks plus dedicated workshops promoting the Mediterranean lifestyle. Before and after cardiac rehabilitation, patients completed the Medlife Index Questionnaire. High baseline adherence was associated with favourable glucose (5.39 vs. 6.1 mmol/L; p < 0.001), triglycerides (1.1 vs. 1.5 mmol/L; p = 0.002), and HDL cholesterol levels (1.32 vs. 1.12 mmol/L; p = 0.032). More importantly, the Medlife Score significantly improved following comprehensive cardiac rehabilitation in patients with low baseline adherence (from 13.8 to 16.7 points; p < 0.001), but not in patients with high baseline adherence (from 19.4 to 18.8 points; p = 0.205). Our findings suggested that Mediterranean lifestyle promotion during cardiac rehabilitation improved adherence to the Mediterranean lifestyle, especially in low-adherence patients.

• Language: English
• Keywords: Mediterranean diet, Mediterranean lifestyle, myocardial infarction, coronary artery disease, cardiac rehabilitation, lipid status, physical activity
• Work type: Article
• Typology: 1.01 - Original Scientific Article
• Organization: MF - Faculty of Medicine
• Publication status: Published
• Publication version: Version of Record
• Year: 2022
• Number of pages: 13 str.
• Numbering: Vol. 14, iss. 19, art. 4048
• PID: 20.500.12556/RUL-155616
• UDC: 616.1
• ISSN on article: 2072-6643
• DOI: 10.3390/nu14194048
• COBISS.SI-ID: 125311235
• Publication date in RUL: 08.04.2024

Record is a part of a journal

• Title: Nutrients
• Shortened title: Nutrients
• Publisher: MDPI
• ISSN: 2072-6643
• COBISS.SI-ID: 2948140

Licences

• License: CC BY 4.0, Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International
• Link: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/
• Description: This is the standard Creative Commons license that gives others maximum freedom to do what they want with the work as long as they credit the author.

Secondary language

• Language: Slovenian
• Keywords: miokardni infarkt, mediteranski način življenja, mediteranska dieta, koronarna arterijska bolezen, lipidi, fizična aktivnost

Projects

• Funder: Other - Other funder or multiple funders
• Funding programme: University Medical Centre Ljubljana, Tertiary grant

• Funder: ARRS - Slovenian Research Agency
• Project number: V3-2104
• Name: Sekundarna preventiva in kakovosti oskrbe po srčnem infarktu v slovenskih bolnišnicah ter analiza vpliva epidemije covid-19 na obravnavo aterosklerotične bolezni