Diet and Clinical Outcomes in a Heart Failure Population (JACC Heart Failure April 2026)-Article: Diet and Clinical Outcomes in a Heart Failure Population

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This multinational observational study examined dietary habits and outcomes in 3,798 heart failure patients from 25 countries in the G-CHF registry. Using food frequency questionnaires, researchers assessed intake of 11 common food groups and an overall diet quality score (modified Alternative Healthy Eating Index, mAHEI). Patients were followed for a median of 3 years, during which 1,236 experienced death or heart failure hospitalization, 890 died, and 593 were hospitalized for heart failure.<br /><br />After adjustment for clinical and demographic factors, higher legume intake was associated with a lower risk of the composite outcome of death or heart failure hospitalization. Moderate vegetable intake was associated with a lower risk of heart failure hospitalization. In contrast, higher refined grain intake was associated with a higher risk of heart failure hospitalization. Specifically, consuming 1–3 servings per day or more of refined grains increased hospitalization risk compared with 1 serving per day. Other foods studied, including fruits, whole grains, nuts, fish, poultry, unprocessed red meat, eggs, and dairy, showed no significant associations with outcomes.<br /><br />The overall healthy diet score (mAHEI) was not significantly linked to death, heart failure hospitalization, or the combined outcome. The findings suggest that in heart failure, individual food choices may matter more than overall diet quality as measured by this index.<br /><br />The authors conclude that higher consumption of legumes and vegetables and lower consumption of refined grains may help reduce adverse outcomes in people with heart failure, while most other dietary components appear neutral. They note that these observational results should be confirmed in future studies.

Meta Tag

Concept Heart Failure

Concept Legumes

Concept Vegetables

Concept Refined Grain

Concept Heart Failure Hospitalization

Keywords

heart failure

dietary habits

legume intake

vegetable intake

refined grains

hospitalization risk

mortality

observational study

diet quality score

G-CHF registry

Heart Failure

Legumes

Vegetables

Refined Grain

Heart Failure Hospitalization