Effects of lifestyle modification and lipid intake variations on patients with peripheral vascular disease

The aim of the present study was to evaluate the effects of diets enriched in monounsaturated fatty acids (MUFA) (olive oil) or MUFA plus n-3 polyunsaturated fatty, acids (PUFA) (olive oil plus fish oil), associated with an intervention program that focused on lifestyle habits, physical performance, plasma lipids, and lipoprotein composition in patients with peripheral vascular disease (PVD). A 15-month longitudinal nutritional and lifestyle intervention study was carried out with 24 free-living male patients aged 58.0 +/- 2.2 years diagnosed with PVD (Fontaine grade 11). The patients were clinically evaluated and counseled to change their dietary and lifestyle habits for six months, after this period they consumed an olive oil-based diet for three months; after a three-month wash-out period, their diet was supplemented with a combination of fish oil and olive oil for the final three months. Lifestyle interventions resulted in a significant decrease in cigarette smoking and an increase in physical activity. Claudicometry was lower at the end of the study than at the beginning. Intake of the fish oil supplement led to significant changes in lipid lipoprotein composition, decreasing low-density lipoprotein (LDL) cholesterol. The lifestyle intervention program, together with a high intake of olive plus fish oil, seems to produce important beneficial effects in nutritional management, physical performance, and clinical parameters of PVD patients.