Effect on blood lipids and body composition of a high-fat (MUFA) and high-fiber diet: A case-control study.

Metabolic Syndrome (MetS) is a constellation of risk factors including abdominal obesity, high triglycerides, low HDL cholesterol (HDL-C), elevated blood pressure, and elevated fasting glucose. In Spain, according to WHO criteria, the MetS prevalence is shown to be 32% in men and 29% in women. The role of dietary habits is one of the main therapeutic strategies for the management of MetS but the most effective dietary pattern has not been established yet. This study aimed to analyze the effect of on body composition, serum lipids, and MetS components of a high-MUFA and high-fiber diet (HMFD). A case-control study was performed considering 40 cohabiting women. Participants were randomly assigned to HMFD group or high mono-unsaturated diet (HMD) group to receive one of the two proposed dietary interventions. All data (serum lipids, blood pressure, height, weight, body composition, and waist circumference) were collected fasting at baseline, 55, 98, and 132 days. The HMFD group showed higher decrease in waist circumference than in the HMD group. LDL-C dropped in both groups. Triglycerides in the HMFD group dropped during the intervention, but once the intervention was over, they returned to baseline values. The mean systolic blood pressure was lower in HMFD group. A HMFD from a weekly consumption of processed meat (Torrezno de Soria) deeply fried in extra virgin olive oil in combination with vegetables logged in a Mediterranean diet can improve MetS risk factors in healthy overweight women.