Nature Medicine | Effects of a personalized nutrition program on cardiometabolic health: a randomized controlled trial

Bermingham, K.M., Linenberg, I., Polidori, L. et al. Effects of a personalized nutrition program on cardiometabolic health: a randomized controlled trial. Nat Med (2024). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41591-024-02951-6        

Summary By: Aakash Khurana

This research, published in Nature Medicine, investigated the effectiveness of a personalized nutrition program (PDP) compared to standard dietary advice on cardiometabolic health.

Study Design:

Randomized controlled trials with 347 participants (aged 41-70 years) were split into two groups:

• Personalized Diet Program (PDP): Received a tailored diet based on factors like food characteristics, individual responses to meals (blood sugar and triglycerides), gut microbiome, and health history. This program was delivered through a mobile app for 18 weeks.
• Control Group: Received standard dietary recommendations following US Department of Agriculture guidelines (2020-2025) with access to online resources, check-ins, video lessons, and a leaflet.

Key Findings:

• The primary outcomes measured changes in blood levels of "bad" cholesterol (LDL-C) and triglycerides (TG) after 18 weeks.
• While LDL-C levels didn't show significant changes, the PDP group had a significant reduction in triglycerides compared to the control group.

Improvements observed in the PDP group):

• Body weight
• Waist circumference
• HbA1c (glycemic control marker)
• Diet quality
• Gut microbiome diversity (particularly in highly adherent participants)

No significant differences were found between groups for blood pressure, insulin, glucose, and other markers.

The study suggests a personalized nutrition program may offer some benefits for cardiometabolic health compared to general dietary advice, although larger trials are needed to confirm these findings.

Program details:

• The personalized program incorporated factors like individual responses to food (blood sugar and triglyceride levels), gut microbiome composition, and dietary preferences to generate personalized recommendations.
• No serious side effects were reported.
• The control group received standard dietary advice based on US Department of Agriculture guidelines delivered through online resources and educational materials.

Important considerations:

• The control group received more intensive support than is typical with standard dietary advice, potentially affecting the effect size of the personalized program.
• Adherence to the PDP was linked to stronger positive outcomes.

Overall, the study suggests that personalized nutrition programs offer advantages over generic dietary advice for improving cardiometabolic health, particularly weight management and blood sugar control. However, more research is needed to isolate personalization's specific effects and determine the long-term impact.

Note: Please note that this summary does not include all of the research article's information. If you find the summary interesting, please read the research paper that is linked below.