UC Davis

Cardiovascular disease (CVD) is the leading cause of death in the United States, and cardiovascular events are reduced and prevented when patients follow the Mediterranean diet (MedDiet). Current literature demonstrated barriers in patients ability to adapt to the MedDiet intervention. Therefore, this applied project addressed the literature gap by developing and introducing education materials addressing these barriers to strengthen the impact of dietary intervention related to CVD. This project incorporated the researcher and experts' clinical experience in CVD prevention and cooking and dietary intervention. Suggestions from these experts led to modifications in the educational video created by the researcher. This educational video is a starting point to provide foundational knowledge to patients with CVD. A total of ten medical professionals analyzed the applied project intervention video and were surveyed regarding video clarity, professionalism, the relevance of information, and appeal. The average score of the video was 4 out of 5 stars. Studies indicated that familiarity with the MedDiet is closely associated with adherence. An introductory education video used to better familiarize patients with MedDiet recipes may improve patients' eating habits and in turn, reduce the risk of cardiac events.