The Association between the Consumption of Animal Proteins and Dairy Products with Metabolic Syndrome in People with Premature Heart Disease

Abstract

Background: Cardiovascular diseases (CVDs) are the leading cause of death worldwide. Unfortunately, the age of contracting this disease has decreased, leading to premature heart disease. Metabolic syndrome is one of the main risk factors for this disease, and lifestyle modification, including diet modification, is one of the main ways to control it. The current study aimed to investigate the relationship between the consumption of animal proteins and dairy products and metabolic syndrome in patients with premature heart disease. Methods: This cross-sectional study was conducted on 440 individuals with premature CVDs. The diagnosis of metabolic syndrome was based on the Adult Treatment Panel III (ATPIII) criteria. Food intake related to the previous year was collected using a valid and reliable semi-quantitative food frequency questionnaire with 100 food items. Medication use was assessed through a questionnaire, and the intake of animal proteins and dairy products was calculated. To determine the association between animal proteins and dairy intake with metabolic syndrome, logistic regression analysis was used, adjusting for potential confounding factors. Findings: In the current study, 70.7 of the participants were men, and the average age of the participants was 50.65 ± 6.51 years. Furthermore, 64.3 of the participants were suffering from metabolic syndrome. After adjusting for energy intake, age, gender, body mass index (BMI), physical activity, and family history of heart disease, a higher consumption of high-fat dairy products was found to have an inverse relationship with metabolic syndrome odds ratio (OR): 0.45, 95% confidence interval (CI): 0.26-0.78, P = 0.014. On the other hand, no significant relationship was observed between the intake of animal protein and dairy products with moderate fat and the risk of metabolic syndrome. Conclusion: A higher intake of high-fat dairy products was associated with a lower prevalence of metabolic syndrome, while the intake of animal protein and moderate-fat dairy products did not show a relationship with metabolic syndrome. © 2025, Isfahan University of Medical Sciences(IUMS). All rights reserved.