Dietary Factors, Dietary Patterns, and Cardiovascular Disease Risk in Representative Japanese Cohorts: NIPPON...

Diet is one of the most important factors affecting healthy life expectancy through the onset of cardiovascular disease (CVD) risk as well as various chronic diseases. Because dietary habits and disease structure differ depending on the country, region, and/or race, evidence from each population is required. NIPPON DATA80/90 is a long-term cohort study of a representative Japanese population that participated in national nutrition surveys. Among the many findings of this cohort study, a dietary pattern with higher intake of fruits, vegetables, fish (n-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids), and dietary fiber and lower intake of salt as well as sodium-to-potassium ratio was found to be associated with a lower risk of CVD mortality. The results from our cohort study would be useful for effectively preventing CVD. This article reviews the published studies from the NIPPON DATA80/90 to highlight the significant findings that may be used to develop risk prevention strategies for CVD.