Dietary habits in relation to incidence of cardiovascular disease and death in women: a 12-year follow-up of participants in the population study of women in Gothenburg, Sweden.

Dietary intake as initially estimated by means of a 24-h recall has been related to the incidence of ischemic heart disease, stroke, and overall mortality during a 12-yr follow-up period in a prospective study of 1462 women representative of the general population. Energy intake was inversely correlated to the 12-yr incidence of myocardial infarction. The correlation was independent of age, indices of obesity, smoking habits, serum cholesterol, serum triglycerides, diabetes, systolic blood pressure, and physical activity. No correlation was found between dietary intake and incidence of stroke or overall mortality, nor was any correlation found between end-points and intake of fish, energy percentage of fat, protein, and carbohydrates. These observations suggest that suboptimal intake of nutrients may be an important factor in the pathogenesis of ischemic heart disease.