Blackmores Institute

In a study, researchers evaluated the food intakes of 12 330 postmenopausal women from the Women’s Health Initiative (WHI) data. They found that higher adherence to the plant-based Portfolio Diet was statistically significant in reducing the risk of multiple cardiovascular disease (CVD) outcomes.
 
 
 <table> <tr><td> Key study information and outcomes
 - Large prospective cohort study
 - 12 330 postmenopausal women
 - Portfolio Diet (plant protein, nuts, fiber, phytosterols, monounsaturated oils)
 - 15 years food analysis follow up
 - Cardiovascular disease risk outcomes- Highest diet adherence = risk reduction by:
 · 11% in total CVD
 · 14% in CHD
 · 17% in heart failure ­ No effect on stroke or atrial fibrillation </td></tr> </table>
 
 What is the Portfolio Diet?The Dietary Portfolio or Portfolio Diet was developed in the early 2000s. It originally included four food groups known to lower cholesterol – plant protein, nuts, viscous fibre and phytosterols. In this latest study, researchers added monounsaturated fats to the portfolio.The Portfolio Diet includes:- Plant protein (soy products, legumes and pulses)
 - Nuts
 - Viscous fibre (oats, barley, psyllium, eggplant, okra and fruit)
 - Phytosterols (in many plant foods)
 - Monounsaturated oils (olive, avocado or canola). Why the Portfolio Diet?In previous studies, the Portfolio Diet showed an effect on key blood markers for heart disease. A systematic review and meta-analysis confirmed these results showing this diet significantly lowered:- Low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C) by 17%
 - Other non-high-density LDL-C by 14%
 - Apolipoprotein B (ApoB) by 15%
 - C-reactive protein (CRP) by 32%Due to these outcomes, the question remained whether these beneficial effects would translate into a lower risk of clinical cardiovascular disease (CVD).
 
 The Dietary Portfolio study details and outcomesResearchers reviewed the 15-year diet history of postmenopausal women (aged 50 to 79 years) who were free of CVD. The primary outcomes were total CVD, coronary heart disease (CHD) and stroke. The secondary outcomes were heart failure (HF) and atrial fibrillation (AF). Food frequency questionnaires were analysed and scored according to the healthy nature and quantity of the foods eaten in line with the Dietary Portfolio components. The women in the lowest scoring quartile served as the reference group. When comparing the highest to lowest adherence rates to the Portfolio Diet, there was a clear and significant benefit on CVD health. The diet reduced the following:- Total CVD risk by 11%
 - CHD risk by 14%
 - HF risk by 17%The results remained significant after various analyses. However, there was no association with stroke or AF risk reduction. The authors concluded that "These findings highlight the plant-based Portfolio Diet as another dietary therapeutic approach for CVD prevention, alongside other dietary patterns.” They are also awaiting the findings of another clinical trial studying the effects of the Portfolio Diet combined with exercise on atherosclerotic CVD risk.
 
 Source:Glenn AJ, Lo K, Jenkins DJA, et al. Relationship between a plant-based dietary portfolio and risk of cardiovascular disease: Findings from the Women's Health Initiative prospective cohort study. J Am Heart Assoc. 2021;10(16):e021515. <a href="https://www.ahajournals.org/doi/10.1161/JAHA.121.021515" target="_blank">https://www.ahajournals.org/doi/10.1161/JAHA.121.021515</a>

Supporting the increasing body of evidence around the benefits of plant-based eating – the Portfolio Diet proves to be a valuable therapeutic dietary strategy for reducing cardiovascular risk in women.

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