Uncovering Causal Links Between Dietary Habits and Cardiovascular Diseases

Abstract

Dietary modification plays a crucial role in preventing cardiovascular diseases (CVDs), but evidence linking specific diets to stroke and acute myocardial infarction (AMI) is limited. This study investigates causal relationships between defined dietary exposures (e.g., fruit/vegetable intake, muesil consumption) and CVD outcomes, while evaluating the potential mediating role of high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-C). We employed two-sample Mendelian randomization (MR) using genetic data from genome-wide association studies (GWAS) in the UK Biobank and IEU database, validated with FinnGen data, to examine causal relationships between 83 dietary habits and CVD. Additionally, a meta-analysis was conducted using studies from PubMed and Web of Science to assess diet-stroke associations. Random-effects models were applied to estimate pooled relative risks (RR), with sensitivity analyses for robustness. MR identified eight significant diet-AMI and eighteen diet-stroke associations, but HDL-C did not mediate the diet-stroke relationship. The meta-analysis of 50 studies confirmed a link between specific diets and stroke risk. This study confirms associations between specific dietary factors and stroke/AMI, though HDL-C's role in AMI is unclear. These results reinforce the importance of targeted dietary modifications in primary prevention, and further research is needed to clarify underlying mechanisms.