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Can pulses play a role in improving cardiometabolic health? Evidence from systematic reviews and meta‐analyses
Author(s) -
Viguiliouk Effie,
Blanco Mejia Sonia,
Kendall Cyril W.C.,
Sievenpiper John L.
Publication year - 2017
Publication title -
annals of the new york academy of sciences
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.712
H-Index - 248
eISSN - 1749-6632
pISSN - 0077-8923
DOI - 10.1111/nyas.13312
Subject(s) - medicine , systematic review , meta analysis , environmental health , randomized controlled trial , overweight , disease , cohort , obesity , evidence based medicine , quality of evidence , medline , intensive care medicine , alternative medicine , pathology , political science , law
Obesity, diabetes, and cardiovascular disease (CVD) present important unmet prevention and treatment challenges. Dietary pulses are sustainable, affordable, and nutrient‐dense foods that have shown a wide range of health benefits in the prevention and management of these conditions. Despite these findings, recommendations for pulse intake continue to vary across chronic disease guidelines, and intake levels continue to remain low. Here, we summarize findings from recent systematic reviews and meta‐analyses assessing the relationship between dietary pulse consumption and cardiometabolic health and assess the overall strength of the evidence using the Grading of Recommendations, Assessment, Development, and Evaluation tool. We conclude that systematic reviews and meta‐analyses of prospective cohort studies assessing the relationship between legumes and the risk of coronary heart disease appear to provide moderate‐quality evidence of a benefit, and several systematic reviews and meta‐analyses of randomized controlled trials assessing the effect of pulses on cardiometabolic risk factors provide low‐ to moderate‐quality evidence of a benefit. There remains an urgent need, however, for more high‐quality prospective cohort studies and large, high‐quality, randomized trials to clarify the benefits of dietary pulses in the prevention and management of overweight/obesity, diabetes, and CVD.