A portfolio diet is linked to a reduced risk of heart attack and stroke, a new study shows.
If you want to follow a heart-healthy diet, a specific eating pattern can help.
Whether you want to lower your cholesterol, lower your risk of stroke or simply eat more plant-based foods, new research published last month by the American Heart Association shows a link between the lesser-known portfolio diet and a reduced risk of heart disease. and vascular diseases. disease and stroke.
The goal behind the portfolio diet is to lower LDL, or “bad” cholesterol, a risk factor for heart disease and stroke.
To do this, the diet focuses on four main groups believed to lower cholesterol: soluble fiber, soy protein, plant sterols and nuts.
Because of these concerns, the diet encourages certain swaps, such as soy milk as a dairy substitute, and avocados and vegetable oils as a butter alternative.
In addition to replacing certain foods with choices that are more likely to lower cholesterol, the portfolio diet emphasizes the importance of soluble fiber. Foods such as oats, barley, lentils, beans, broccoli, eggplant and psyllium are encouraged because they can bind cholesterol in the blood so it can be excreted.
Many of these foods are found in other existing heart-healthy diets, but according to Andrea Glenn, PhD, RD, one of the authors of the new study and postdoctoral researcher at Harvard T. H. Chan School of Public Health, “for this particular study , we were interested to investigate whether the combination of these foods, part of the portfolio diet, also translated into a lower risk of cardiovascular disease.”
Here’s what you need to know about the practical implications of the portfolio diet, as well as tips for following the diet.
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To understand how the portfolio diet affects heart health, the research team followed three different large-scale studies and assessed participants’ food frequency questionnaires at baseline and every four years.
The authors created a Portfolio Diet Score (PDS) ranking plant proteins, nuts and seeds, viscous fiber sources, plant sterols and sources of monounsaturated fats. After looking at dietary data over 30 years of follow-up in more than 200,000 individuals, they found that those with a higher IBS score had a 14% lower risk of cardiovascular disease, coronary heart disease and stroke.
Glenn explained that the original studies showed that LDL cholesterol could be reduced by almost 30%.
“We also saw that individuals in the current study did not eat as much of the portfolio diet as in the studies,” she said, “highlighting that even partial adoption of the diet can provide cardiovascular benefits.”
The previous study also compared the portfolio diet with the use of statins (cholesterol-lowering drugs).
Although the diet can result in clinically meaningful reductions in LDL cholesterol, the 28.6% reduction in LDL cholesterol was close to the 30.9% reduction on 20 mg with lovastatin.
So ultimately, the reductions seen through diet are at the low end of what could be achieved with medication alone.
“The study is not at all comparable to the use of statins,” said Gregory Katz, MD, a cardiologist at NYU Langone. Health.
He explained that the study did not look at the portfolio diet’s effectiveness in reducing the number of heart attacks or strokes. Making dietary changes in accordance with the portfolio diet can help lower disease risk, but Katz does not recommend this in place of a statin.
The study is also not clear about how many participants were also taking statins, said Jay Chudow, MD, a cardiologist at Montefiore Medical Center. Health.
“It is important to note that statins are not recommended for primary prevention for everyone,” Chudow said, “but for those who are at higher risk related to high cholesterol, diabetes or other conditions.”
It’s no surprise that switching to a plant-based way of eating helps lower cholesterol levels, but more research is needed before the portfolio diet is more widely recommended for heart health.
The portfolio diet is less well known than the Mediterranean diet and the Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension (DASH) diet, but there are significant overlaps.
All diets focus on eating whole grains, fruits, vegetables, plant proteins, nuts, seeds and vegetable oils. They also emphasize a decrease in saturated fat from red meat and dairy.
“The main difference between the dietary patterns and the portfolio diet is that the portfolio diet emphasizes plant proteins, especially soy, as well as the syrupy sources of fiber and phytosterols,” Glenn said.
Because all of these diets have been shown to have a positive effect on cardiovascular disease risk, individuals can choose which elements to include that suit their preferences, lifestyle and values.
The best way to implement the portfolio diet into your life is to start with small, achievable swaps.
Try breaking it down by choosing one of the four parts of the portfolio diet to focus on at a time.
For example, start by replacing meat with a soy-based protein for one meal per week. Or add a source of syrupy fiber to your diet every day, such as oatmeal for breakfast or roasted broccoli for dinner.
Because the Portfolio Diet is not the only heart-healthy eating pattern, your diet may look like a combination of the Portfolio Diet, the Mediterranean Diet, and the DASH Diet, depending on what is right for your lifestyle and individual nutritional needs.
The good news is that every step toward heart-healthy choices is a good one.
Chudow recommends that patients simply choose the healthy diet that they can easily maintain and make it part of their routine, whether that is a Portfolio, Mediterranean or DASH diet.
“I discuss with my patients ways to increase their healthy food choices by adding fruits, vegetables and whole grains,” he said.
For individualized guidance and advice for your nutritional needs, it is best to consult a registered dietitian.