Evidence map›Paper›PMID 41824891›Full record

SynthesisMedicine2026

Mediterranean diet versus low-fat diet on cardiovascular disease (CVD) risk factors and outcomes: A systematic review of RCTs.

Maneeth Mylavarapu, Aarushi Batra, Israel Garcia, Abirami Balasubramanian, Muhammad Ammar Husnain, Ragha Harshitha Atla, Poorna Sai Harshini Muttuluru, Elias Abboud, Alisson Silva

Abstract readSystematic Review
In one paragraph

Synthesis in Medicine, 2026. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Not yet cited in PubMed.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
0citing papers in PubMed
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

0 citing papers in PubMed.

No citing paper in PubMed yet.

4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

9 authors.

Maneeth MylavarapuDepartment of Cardiology, Endeavor Health Cardiovascular Institute, Endeavor Health Glenbrook Hospital, Glenview, IL.ORCID 0009-0004-2367-9615
Aarushi BatraDepartment of Internal Medicine, LLRM Medical College, Meerut, India.
Israel GarciaDepartment of Internal Medicine, St. George's University School of Medicine, True Blue, Grenada.ORCID 0009-0009-4609-6179
Abirami BalasubramanianDepartment of Internal Medicine, Stanley Hospital and Medical College, Chennai, India.
Muhammad Ammar HusnainDepartment of Internal Medicine, CMH Lahore Medical College, Lahore, Pakistan.
Ragha Harshitha AtlaDepartment of Internal Medicine, Stanley Hospital and Medical College, Chennai, India.
Poorna Sai Harshini MuttuluruDepartment of Internal Medicine, Government Medical College, Anantapur, India.
Elias AbboudDepartment of Internal Medicine, Stanley Hospital and Medical College, Chennai, India.
Alisson SilvaDepartment of Critical Care Medicine, UNIME University School of Medicine, Tereza de Lisieux Hospital, Lauro de Freitas, Brazil.

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

backgroundThe Mediterranean diet (MD) and low-fat diet (LFD) were well-known dietary interventions for cardiovascular disease prevention. However, there is an ongoing debate about the relative efficacy of improving cardiovascular (CV) risk factors and clinical outcomes between the 2. This systematic review aims to evaluate and summarize findings from randomized controlled trials (RCTs) that directly compare the MD and LFD concerning CV risk factors and clinical outcomes.

methodsPer the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-analyses guidelines, a comprehensive literature search was conducted across PubMed, Google Scholar, SCOPUS, Science Direct, and RCTs that compared MD and LFD in adults, and reported data on CV risk factors or clinical outcomes were included.

resultsOur systematic review includes 11 RCTs with 5942 participants. MD significantly reduced the formation of procoagulant and prothrombotic microvesicles. Studies have also reported that MD has resulted in greater reductions in total cholesterol, cholesterol-high-density lipoproteins ratios, insulin levels, blood glucose levels, leukocyte count, and body mass index compared to LFD.

conclusionMD demonstrates superior efficacy over LFD in improving CV risk factors and outcomes. These findings could support the preferential recommendation of MD over LFD for the secondary prevention of cardiovascular diseases. Further research should explore the long-term adherence and implementation of these dietary interventions in diverse populations.

Indexed as

Cardiovascular DiseasesDiet, Fat-RestrictedDiet, MediterraneanHeart Disease Risk FactorsHumansRandomized Controlled Trials as TopicRisk Factorscardiovascular risk factorsdietary inflammatory indexlow-fat dietMediterranean dietrandomized control trialssystematic review

Identifiers

PMID41824891
PMCPMC12991705

What Socratic holds

Textmetadata
LicenceCC BY
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Registered trials

None linked

Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the Socratic graph.