Five years of physical exercise and low fat diet: effects on progression of coronary artery disease

This study was designed to assess the long-term effects of low-fat diet and intensive physical exercise.

Long-term efficacy of exercise and diet was assessed in 18 nonselected, fully employed patients with symptomatic coronary artery disease. Results were compared to 18 patients on usual care.

In the intervention group at 1 year, serum lipoproteins were brought to ideal levels, exercise-induced myocardial ischemia was significantly reduced, and progression in coronary atherosclerosis was retarded. After more than 5 years, patients in the intervention group showed a significant reduction in lipoprotein levels (total cholesterol, 248 [179-299] vs 214 [173-272] mg/dL, P < .01; low density lipoprotein, 146 [83-216], vs 152 [121-197] mg/dL, P < .005 vs control; triglycerides; 151 [80-303] mg/dl, vs 98 [46-182] mg/dL; P < .005) and body mass index (26 +/- 2.9 vs 25.4 +/- 3.3 kg/m2; P < .05). Exercise induced myocardial ischemia, measured by 201thallium scintigraphy, decreased by 29% (41 degrees +/- 36 degrees vs 29 degrees +/- 29 degrees, P = NS) and coronary atherosclerosis, assessed by angiography and digital image processing, progressed at a slower pace in light of a 21% increase in physical work capacity (169 +/- 40 vs 205 +/- 50, P < .01) and a 28% increase in maximal rate pressure product (25 +/- 6 vs 32 +/- 4, P < .004). In contrast, patients in the control group showed only poorly controlled coronary risk factors (total cholesterol, 243 [179-306] vs 26 [178-304] mg/dL, P = NS; low density lipoprotein, 151 [79-229] vs 196 [107-238] mg/dL, P < .0005 vs intervention; body mass index 25.7 +/- 2.5 vs 27.5 +/- 3.5 kg/m2, P < .01), whereas their physical work capacity tended to deteriorate (165 +/- 45 vs 142 +/- 62 Watts, P = not significant).

These data demonstrate that current usual care is insufficient in controlling risk factors of coronary artery disease. However, intensive physical exercise and low-fat diet remain an effective form of treatment after more than 5 years.