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Seven Countries Study | The first study to relate diet with cardiovascular disease. Logo Seven Countries Study | The first study to relate diet with cardiovascular disease. Logo Seven Countries Study | The first study to relate diet with cardiovascular disease. Logo
  • About the study
    • About the Seven Countries Study

      The Seven Countries Study was conceived by Ancel Keys, a Minnesota physiologist, who in the mid-20th century brought together researchers from all over the world. It became a collective effort to study their joint questions about heart and vascular diseases among countries having varied traditional eating patterns and lifestyles.

      Origin & development

      More about how the study was conceived and the two phases of cardiovascular and healthy ageing epidemiology,

    • About the study

      History

      Read about half a century of scientific endeavor.

      Study design

      Find out how the research team obtained its data.

      Measurements

      Which medical, lifestyle and demographic factors were measured?

      Countries

      Learn about the countries and cohorts studied in the SCS.

    • About the study

      Investigators

      Meet the driving forces behind the conduct of the SCS.

      Related studies

      Browse the other studies that sprouted from the SCS.

      Sponsors

      Scan the list of benefactors that made the SCS happen.

      Coordination

      Who ran the SCS and the cohorts?

  • Countries and cohorts
    • The 7 countries

      The cohorts in the Seven Countries were chosen as cultures apparently contrasting in lifestyle, eating habits and risk factor levels.

      Learn about the selection process.

    • Intro

      The 7 Countries

      • USA
      • Finland
      • Netherlands
      • Italy
      • Greece
      • Former Yugoslavia
      • Japan

      Country Trends

      Explore the graphs with trends in CVD risk factors across time and cultures.

  • Investigators
  • Study findings84 main results
    • Study findings

      With hundreds of peer-reviewed publications, the Seven Countries Study generated an incredible amount of information. We’ve selected 84 main results and summarized them for you in our articles.

    • Early associations

      Cross-cultural findings

      See the associations between diet, risk factors and coronary heart disease rates in the 16 cohorts of the Seven Countries Study

      Early associations between cultures

      25-year and 50-year follow-up

      Country Trends

      Explore the graphs with trends in CVD risk factors across time and cultures.

      Show country trends

    • Search by topic
      Alcohol (6) All-cause mortality (16) Blood pressure (8) Body mass index (7) Cardiovascular disease (30) Cholesterol (8) Cohort (12) CVD risk factors (31) Depression & Optimism (11) Diabetes (6) Diet (23) Dietary patterns (4) Disease outcomes (13) ECG predictors (2) Fatty acids (5) Flavonoids & lignans (5) Foods (7) Functional outcomes (10) Healthy aging (38) Lifestyle (25) Mental health (11) Nutrients (8) Physical activity (9) Self-rated health (2) Smoking (11)
  • Books & publications

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Study findings

Conclusions of the research in the Seven Countries

With hundreds of peer-reviewed publications, the Seven Countries Study generated an incredible amount of information. We’ve selected 84 main results and summarized them for you in our articles.

Find articles by topic:

Alcohol (6) All-cause mortality (16) Blood pressure (8) Body mass index (7) Cardiovascular disease (30) Cholesterol (8) Cohort (12) CVD risk factors (31) Depression & Optimism (11) Diabetes (6) Diet (23) Dietary patterns (4) Disease outcomes (13) ECG predictors (2) Fatty acids (5) Flavonoids & lignans (5) Foods (7) Functional outcomes (10) Healthy aging (38) Lifestyle (25) Mental health (11) Nutrients (8) Physical activity (9) Self-rated health (2) Smoking (11)

Main research results

Cross-cultural associations
Cardiovascular disease
Healthy aging
Risk factors
Diabetes
Diet
Lifestyle

 

Cross-cultural findings

See the associations between diet, risk factors and coronary heart disease rates in the 16 cohorts of the Seven Countries Study

Early associations between cultures

25-year and 50-year follow-up

 

Country Trends

Explore the graphs with trends in CVD risk factors across time and cultures.

Show country trends

The Seven Countries Study

The Seven Countries Study is the first major study to investigate diet and lifestyle along with other risk factors for cardiovascular disease, across contrasting countries and cultures and over an extended period of time.

We have results from over 50 years of follow-up.

More about the study

Most visited study findings

  • Serum cholesterol and coronary heart disease
  • Mediterranean diet and cardiovascular disease
  • Blood pressure and coronary heart disease
  • Fish and cardiovascular disease
  • Tea and cardiovascular disease
  • Chocolate and cardiovascular disease
  • ECG predictors and CHD
  • Major risk factors and cardiovascular disease
  • Average saturated fat intake and 25-year coronary heart disease rates in the 16 cohorts
  • Trans fat and coronary heart disease
  • Dietary patterns and all-cause mortality
  • Flavan-3-ols (catechins) and cardiovascular disease

Popular pages

  • Ancel Keys
  • Countries and cohorts
  • The Mediterranean diet
  • Study design
  • Cross-cultural relationships
  • Country trends

About this website

The aim of the Seven Countries Study website is to recount and illustrate the history and contributions of the study, including outcomes about risk factors, diet, lifestyle and health.

See also the History of Heart Attack Prevention Research website.

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