Systemic lupus erythematosus patients who followed the Mediterranean diet experienced an improvement in the clinical course of the disease, according to a study from the University of Granada.
Scientists at the university and the Biosanitary Research Institute of Granada studied 280 patients with lupus, starting in 2017. They assessed participants’ adherence to the Mediterranean diet and their general lifestyle.
The researcher also found that patients who followed the Mediterranean diet had lower rates of obesity and cardiovascular disease, from which patients with lupus are at higher risk of suffering.
The study found that eating anti-inflammatory foods heavily associated with the Mediterranean diet, such as olive oil, fruits, vegetables and fish, benefited lupus patients by reducing organ damage.
In turn, avoiding foods high in sugar and processed meat, which are not part of the Mediterranean diet, was also associated with health benefits.
“These results are of great relevance and impact, and lead us to advise that, together with medical treatment, nutritional counseling could be very useful to improve the course of lupus and its comorbidities,” said Norberto Ortego Centeno, a researcher who led the study at the University of Granada.
However, the researchers also stressed that further studies were needed to confirm these findings.
For the full study please click here.
