One of the main people responsible behind the heart attacks and heart problems in the world is the dietaccording to one of the largest studies that have been carried out on the matter.
The research concluded that this modifiable factor was responsible for the loss of 97 million years of healthy life in 2023 alone. In this regard, the authors warn about four of the worst (and more common) errors that continue to feed the figure.
What damages the heart the most?
The study published in the journal Nature Medicine is part of the macro project Global Burden of Diseasethe world’s largest scientific and collaborative effort to systematically quantify health loss.
It analyzed how what the world eats (or stops eating) is causing heart attacks and heart problemstracking the data of 204 countries over 33 years (1990-2023).
Among the findings, it was detected that poor nutrition led to the loss of almost 97 million years of healthy life and was directly responsible for 4.06 million deaths from heart attacks in the world. By analyzing 13 dietary factors, the study showed that the vast majority of deaths occur due to a combination of four failures:
1. Little consumption of nuts and seeds
A number of reports suggest that diets enriched with dried fruitslike the walnutshave a significant impact on the cardiovascular and cerebral system. Usually thought of as a snack or accompaniment, this group contains several components with antioxidants and anti-inflammatory.
Benefits have been observed on memory, learning, motor coordination, anxiety and locomotor activity in addition to a decrease in the risk or progression of other brain disorders such as Parkinson’sstrokes and depression.
In contrast, removing nuts from the daily menu seems to influence the LDL cholesterol levels (popularly known as bad cholesterol) and an increase in inflammation. For this reason, the Heart Foundation recommends consuming 3 to 4 small handfuls of nuts and seeds per week to reduce the risk of heart disease.
2. Little consumption of whole grains
The whole grainslike the oatmeal, They are one of the star sources of fiber and are associated with lower inflammation as well as improvements in blood pressure, blood sugar and cholesterol levels. They also provide high quality energy and have been suggested to slow down the cognitive impairment.
A meta-analysis that combined studies conducted in United States, United Kingdom and Scandinavian countries concluded that eating 70 grams of whole grains dailyand reduces cardiovascular mortality by up to 23%.
3. Little fruit consumption
The lack of some foods in the daily diet does not go unnoticed by the body, a fruit deficiency is no exception. These foods are among the most powerful for health since they provide:
- Fiber
- Potassium and magnesium
- Antioxidants
According to some studies, for every 200 grams of fruit and vegetables per day, the risk of coronary heart disease decreases by up to 8%.
4. Excess sodium
High sodium consumption contributes to high blood pressure, strokes or kidney disease. It is an element that goes beyond salt: it is part of products such as milk or seafood.
Although the options of natural origin provide significant levels of sodium, the red light is found in theultra-processed (bread, some types of meat and snacks)as well as in condiments such as soy sauce and fish sauce.
Furthermore, sodium glutamate, which is used as a food ingredient and additive in many parts of the world has become one of the main concerns for encouraging greater consumption than suggested.
Thanks to medical advances, the overall mortality rate attributable to diet decreased by 43.9% globally between 1990 and 2023. Australia, Western Europe and North America reported the most optimistic numbers.
However, the burden remains extremely high and heavy in low- and middle-income countries, where heart disease continue to be crowned as the main causes of deathit is enough to point out that in Mexico there were 95,935 deaths from heart diseases between January and June 2025as reported by National Institute of Statistics and Geography (INEGI).
One of the main warnings from the authors is the consumption of processed meatwhose price has become cheaper in recent years. In this regard, they propose that reducing the number of portions that people eat and instead increasing the intake of healthy foods could be the best bet to reduce the number of deaths.
