{"doi":"10.1016/j.cdnut.2025.104573","title":"A Mediterranean-Style Diet with Lean Beef Lowers Blood Pressure and Improves Vascular Function: Secondary Outcomes from a Randomized Crossover Trial","abstract":"Background The Mediterranean (MED) dietary pattern improves cardiovascular disease (CVD) risk factors. Increased central systolic blood pressure and arterial stiffness are independent predictors of CVD. The effect of a MED diet on these measures of vascular health has not been investigated. Objectives The aim was to evaluate the effects of a MED diet incorporating 0.5 oz./d (MED0.5), 2.5 oz./d (MED2.5) and 5.5 oz./d (MED5.5) of lean beef compared with an Average American diet (AAD) on vascular health [brachial and central blood pressure, pulse wave velocity (PWV), and augmentation index]. Methods A multicenter, 4-period randomized, crossover, controlled-feeding study was conducted at Penn State University and USDA, Beltsville. In random sequence order, participants consumed each test diet for 4 wk. Vascular outcomes were assessed at baseline and the end of each diet period. Linear mixed models were used for analyses. Results Between-diet differences were observed for peripheral and central blood pressure as well as PWV ( P < 0.05). PWV was lower following MED0.5 [−0.24 m/s; 95% confidence interval (CI): −0.44, −0.04] and MED2.5 (−0.27 m/s; 95% CI: −0.47, −0.07) compared with the AAD; PWV was nominally lower after the MED5.5 compared with the AAD (−0.20 m/s; 95% CI: −0.40, 0.003; P = 0.055). Central systolic blood pressure was lower following the MED0.5 (−3.24 mmHg; 95% CI: −5.22, −1.27) and MED2.5 (−2.93 mmHg; 95% CI: −4.91, −0.96) compared with the AAD. A similar pattern was observed for central diastolic pressure. Brachial systolic and diastolic pressure were lower following all 3 MED diets compared with the AAD ( P < 0.05). Conclusions Compared with an AAD, MED diets containing 0.5 and 2.5 oz./d of lean beef improved brachial and central systolic and diastolic blood pressure and arterial stiffness. Our findings suggest that a MED diet with ≤5.5 oz./d of lean beef does not adversely affect vascular function. This trial was registered at clinicaltrials.gov as NCT02723617.","journal":"Current Developments in Nutrition","year":2025,"id":536016,"datarank":0.10397207708399181,"base_score":0.6931471805599453,"endowment":0.6931471805599453,"self_citation_contribution":0.10397207708399181,"citation_network_contribution":0.0,"self_endowment_contribution":0.10397207708399181,"citer_contribution":0.0,"corpus_percentile":null,"corpus_rank":null,"citation_count":1,"citer_count":1,"citers_with_citation_signal":0,"citers_with_endowment":0,"datacite_reuse_total":0,"is_dataset":false,"is_dataset_confidence":0.9543,"is_data_producer":true,"deposit_databanks":{"ClinicalTrials.gov":["NCT02723617"]},"is_oa":true,"file_count":0,"downloads":0,"has_version_chain":false,"published_date":"2025-01-01","fair_score":null,"fair_percentile":null,"algorithm_id":"datarank_citation_only_1hop_v6","ranking_scope":"data_only","authors":[{"id":233816,"name":"Kristina Petersen","orcid":"0000-0003-3914-0353","position":1,"is_corresponding":false},{"id":1420879,"name":"Penny M. Kris-Etherton","orcid":null,"position":2,"is_corresponding":false},{"id":274355,"name":"David J. Baer","orcid":"0000-0003-3454-2097","position":3,"is_corresponding":false},{"id":504760,"name":"Jennifer Fleming","orcid":"0000-0003-1009-0225","position":0,"is_corresponding":true}],"reference_count":31,"raw_metadata":null,"created_at":"2026-07-19T02:52:00.885532Z","pmid":"40201153","pmcid":null,"fwci":null,"citation_percentile":null,"influential_citations":0,"oa_status":null,"license":null,"views":0,"total_file_size_bytes":0,"version_count":0,"fair_f":null,"fair_a":null,"fair_i":null,"fair_r":null,"fair_zscore":null,"fair_rationale":null,"fair_model":null,"fair_agent_version":null,"fair_fulltext_source":null,"fair_has_llm":null,"fair_computed_at":null,"clinical_trials":[],"software_tools":[],"db_accessions":[],"linked_datasets":[],"topics":[]}