DIET COLUMN

Not too surprising to me or for most people, but a study was done which supported a known fact, linking junk food or a “Western” diet and heart attacks. More specifically, junk food was found to be responsible for a third of heart attacks.

Researchers examined diets of 52 countries, questioning more than 16,000 patients, in which 5,700 of them had recently suffered their first heart attack. The participants were divided into one of three groups based on their diet/reported food intake. One group was labeled ‘Oriental’ because of its high intake of tofu, soy, and other sauces, the second group was ‘Western’ because of its high intake of fried food, salty snacks, and meat, and the third group was labeled ‘Prudent’ because of its high intake of fruits and vegetables.