Morten Falch Sortland/Getty Images Researchers investigated the health effects of a healthy Nordic diet (HND) using metabolic analysis.
They found that the diet positively affects glucose metabolism, cholesterol, and cardiometabolic risk.
They conclude that metabolic analysis is an effective way to assess dietary outcomes.
The HND consists of berries, fish, root vegetables, and rapeseed oil. It is known to benefit various aspects of health, including weight lossTrusted Source, blood pressure, inflammationTrusted Source, and blood lipid profilesTrusted Source.
Studies also show that HND lowers the risk of cardiovascular diseaseTrusted Source, type 2 diabetes, and deathTrusted Source.
Nutritional research often faces challenges due to a lack of objective measures, as studies typically rely on subjective tools, such as food consumption questionnaires. Using biomarkers instead can allow researchers to measure dietary health effects more accurately.
In the present study, researchers from Scandinavia assessed the metabolic effects of HND on glucose metabolism, blood lipid profiles, and inflammatory markers using data from a randomized control trial from 2013Trusted Source.
When examining metabolites in the blood and urine of the participants, they found a link between closer adherence to the diet and more benefit on low grade inflammation and lipid profiles, as well as indicators of glucose metabolism.
“The original analysis compared participants in the intervention arm [with] those in the control arm,” said Christina C. Dahm, Ph.D., associate professor in the Department of Public Health at Aarhus University in Denmark, in an interview with Medical News Today. Dr. Dahm was not involved in the study.
“This reanalysis uses metabolites in blood plasma and urine to group people with high levels of metabolites sourced from either the intervention diet or the control diet,” she added.
The study appears in Clinical Nutrition.Metabolic analysisThe 2013 study enrolled 200 participants with overweight and metabolic syndrome. The average age of the participants was 55 years.
After an initial 4-week period, during which the participants consumed their typical diets, the researchers randomly assigned them to follow either HND or a control diet, defined as the average nutrient intake across Nordic countries.
