LDL cholesterol lowered by new food product
A new cholesterol lowering ingredient, Reducol, is expected to be sold in food products this month. It is a mixture of phytosterols derived from coniferous trees and can be mixed with spreads, yoghurts and other food and drinks.
Peter Jones of the school of dietetics and human nutrition at McGill
University, Montreal, and colleagues conducted a double blind randomised
controlled trial of 32 men with total cholesterol levels of between 6.5
and 10mmol/L. Subjects were given a healthy North American diet of prepared
foods alone or the same diet but with phytosterols suspended in the margarine
component (22mg/kg) for 30 days. The researchers found that, on day 30,
low-density lipoprotein levels had decreased by 8.9 per cent in the control
group and 24.4 per cent in the group receiving a phytosterol-enriched
diet (P<0.01). High-density lipoprotein cholesterol and triglyceride
concentrations did not change significantly in the two groups, say the
researchers. No difference in the rate of synthesis of endogenous cholesterol
was observed between the groups (American Journal of Clinical Nutrition 1999;69:1144).
Typical reductions in LDL cholesterol seen with other
cholesterol-lowering margarines are about 10 per cent (PJ, 26 February 2000, p323). Forbes
Medi-Tech, manufacturer of Reducol, says it is different from other cholesterol
lowering foods containing plant sterols because it does not contain sterol
esters — which add calories to a diet. |
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