A Review of Nutrition in Cardiac Rehabilitation 383N utrition is a central component of lifestyle intervention for the secondary prevention of cardiovascular disease (CVD). 1,2 However, despite the evidence of cardioprotective diets as a major modifiable risk factor in reversing and slowing the progression of CVD, 3,4 patient adherence and maintenance of a heart healthy diet remain low and provider-mediated nutritional intervention is underutilized in clinical practice. [5][6][7][8] Cardiac rehabilitation (CR), prescribed to patients with a history of a recent myocardial infarction, chronic stable angina, heart failure with reduced ejection fraction, cardiovascular surgery, and other CVD, is a comprehensive multidisciplinary approach composed of supervised exercise and counseling, with nutrition counseling and education serving as a core component. 1,4,9 Although there is consensus that the quality of nutrition mitigates CVD [10][11][12][13][14] and CR reduces CVD mortality and improves quality of life, 15 best practice methodologies for nutrition intervention in CR are lacking and the barriers to implementation of successful nutrition interventions in CR and sustained healthy dietary behaviors are complex.The aim of this review is to briefly summarize the evidence-based cardioprotective diets and explore the fundamental role of registered dietary nutritionists (RDN) in CR, the current evidence behind nutrition interventions in CR, and behavior change techniques (BCT) integral to nutrition intervention in CR. We provide recommendations for best practices in CR nutrition intervention and propose future innovative strategies of nutrition research and its potential role in supporting long-term change in CR.
METHODOLOGYA literature search was conducted in Google, PubMed, Elsevier, the Evidence Analysis Library of the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics, and the Journal of Cardiopulmonary Rehabilitation and Prevention to identify human studies of original investigations, systematic reviews, and national guidelines published from 1980 to 2021. The following keywords or phrases were involved: CR dietary assessment, intervention in CR, dietary counseling in CR, dietary and nutritional recommendations in CR, CR RDN, current nutrition practice in CR programs, CR nutrition guidelines, CR dietitian resources, CR behavior change, motivational interviewing in CR nutrition, effectiveness of eHealth CR on health outcomes, and barriers and long-term outcomes following CR nutrition.Peer-reviewed original investigations and systematic reviews of adults ≥18 yr participating in CR were included if there was adequate mention of nutritional or dietary assessment and/or intervention. For brevity, cardioprotective diets were included only if described and highlighted by the American Heart Association and American College of Cardiology due to the diversity of dietary patterns in the literature. Only validated dietary questionnaires utilized in CR were included. Exclusion criteria included non-English articles and non-peer-reviewed studies.