Overweight and obesity constitute a major global public health problem. Healthy dietary patterns induce changes at the molecular level. Currently, there are no studies evaluating the effect of a diet based on fruit, avocado, whole grains, and trout (FAWGT diet) on the expression of obesity-related genes. This randomized controlled crossover study included 44 obese Colombians with BMI ≥30 kg/m2 who followed either a FAWGT diet or a usual diet (UD) characterized by a high intake of saturated fat and foods rich in processed carbohydrates. After 8 weeks of intervention, a postprandial expression study of inflammation and oxidative stress-related genes was carried out with a real-time PCR. The intervention with a FAWGT diet decreased the expression of inflammatory (NFKB1, IL6, IL1β) and oxidative stress (NFE2L2) genes compared with the intake of the UD. Finally, the postprandial expression of NFkB1 was positively correlated with triglyceride levels after a dietary intervention with the FAWGT diet and the IL1β gene, and likewise with insulin levels after following the usual diet. The consumption of the FAWGT diet for 8 weeks reduced the inflammatory status; thus, it can be considered a valid alternative to other healthy diets, since it induces beneficial changes on the genes involved in inflammation and oxidative stress in obese people.
Keywords: gene expression; healthy diet; inflammation; obesity; oxidative stress.