A Mediterranean lifestyle is associated with favourable cardiometabolic markers in people with non-dialysis dependent chronic kidney disease

Abstract

Adherence to a Mediterranean lifestyle may be a useful primary and secondary prevention strategy for chronic kidney disease (CKD). This cross-sectional study aimed to explore adherence to a Mediterranean lifestyle and its association with cardiometabolic markers and kidney function in 99 people aged 73.2 ± 10.5 years with non-dialysis dependant CKD (stages 3–5) at a single Australian centre. Adherence was assessed using an a priori index, the Mediterranean Lifestyle (MEDLIFE) index. Cardiometabolic markers (total cholesterol, LDL-cholesterol, HbA1c and random blood glucose) and kidney function (estimated GFR) were sourced from medical records and blood pressure measured upon recruitment. Overall, adherence to a Mediterranean lifestyle was moderate to low with an average MEDLIFE index score of 11.33 ± 3.31. Adherence to a Mediterranean lifestyle was associated with employment (r 0.30, P = 0.004). Mediterranean dietary habits were associated with cardiometabolic markers, such as limiting sugar in beverages was associated with lower diastolic blood pressure (r 0.32, P = 0.002), eating in moderation with favourable random blood glucose (r 0.21, P = 0.043), having more than two snack foods per week with HbA1c (r 0.29, P = 0.037) and LDL-cholesterol (r 0.41, P = 0.002). Interestingly, eating in company was associated with a lower frequency of depression (χ2 5.975, P = 0.015). To conclude, Mediterranean dietary habits were favourably associated with cardiometabolic markers and management of some comorbidities in this group of people with non-dialysis dependent CKD.