The increased prevalence of metabolic diseases in the Arab countries is mainly associated with genetic susceptibility, lifestyle behaviours, such as physical inactivity, and an unhealthy diet. The objective of this review was to investigate and summarise the findings of the gene–lifestyle interaction studies on metabolic diseases such as obesity and type 2 diabetes in Arab populations. Relevant articles were retrieved from a literature search on PubMed, Web of Science, and Google Scholar starting at the earliest indexing date through to January 2024. Articles that reported an interaction between gene variants and diet or physical activity were included and excluded if no interaction was investigated or if they were conducted among a non-Arab population. In total, five articles were included in this review. To date, among three out of twenty-two Arab populations, fourteen interactions have been found between the FTO rs9939609, TCF7L2 rs7903146, MC4R rs17782313, and MTHFR rs1801133 polymorphisms and diet or physical activity on obesity and type 2 diabetes outcomes. The majority of the reported gene–diet/ gene–physical activity interactions (twelve) appeared only once in the review. Consequently, replication, comparisons, and generalisation of the findings are limited due to the sample size, study designs, dietary assessment tools, statistical analysis, and genetic heterogeneity of the studied sample.

Background/Objectives: Diet is recognized as an important determinant of cardiometabolic health, yet evidence from Middle Eastern populations remains scarce. This cross-sectional study investigated the association between a Prudent dietary pattern and multiple indicators of obesity, type-2 diabetes, and cardiovascular disease in a metabolically healthy Qatari cohort. Methods: Data were obtained from 6919 Qatari adults from the Qatar Biobank study. Participants with diagnosed metabolic disorders, pregnancy, or non-fasting blood samples were excluded. Anthropometric, biochemical, and clinical measurements were collected using standardized protocols. Dietary intake was assessed using a 102-item food frequency questionnaire, and a Prudent dietary pattern was derived through factor loadings analysis. Participants were categorized into low and high intake groups of the Prudent dietary pattern. Associations between the Prudent dietary pattern and cardiometabolic markers were examined using generalized linear models adjusted for age, sex, adiposity, and physical activity with Bonferroni correction applied for multiple testing. Results: After correction for multiple testing, greater adherence to the Prudent dietary pattern was significantly associated with lower fat mass index (β = −0.02, p = 0.0001), fasting insulin (β = −0.05, p = 0.0021), and higher fat-free mass (β = 0.01, p = 5.7 × 10⁻⁵). Conclusions: Overall, in a metabolically healthy Qatari population, greater compliance to a Prudent dietary pattern was favorably associated with fat and muscle mass, and insulin regulation after adjusting for age, sex, BMI and physical activity. These findings support the role of dietary habits in greater cardiometabolic health in Middle Eastern Arab populations.