impact of consuming plant sterols on endothelial function and blood pressure

Conditions: Cardiovascular Diseases; Endothelial Dysfunction; Metabolic Syndrome; Diet Modification

Summary: the purpose of the research is to assess the impact of co-consuming plant sterols-enriched food product as part of a healthy eating pattern diet on endothelial function (brachial artery fmd, vasodilation-related and vasoconstriction-related biomarkers) and blood pressure management (24-hour ambulatory and classic blood pressure) in singapore individuals with mets.

this is a 13-wk double-blinded, randomized, crossover study design. following a 1-wk pre-intervention baseline period, subjects will be randomly assigned to follow a healthy eating pattern diet either contain 2.0 g free plant sterols equivalent of their palmityl esters (plant sterol diet) or do not contain plant sterols (control diet) for 4 weeks. after a 4-week dietary 'washout' period, they will consume the alternative diet for 4 weeks. the random assignment will be done with sas 9.4 software. body size measurement, dietary assessment, brachial artery fmd and blood pressure measurements, and fasting-state blood collection will be conducted at week 1, 5, 9, and 13, which correspond to before and during the last 1 week of the two 4-week intervention periods. during study week 1 and weeks 6-9, all subjects will consume their habitual, unrestricted self-chosen diets. during study weeks 2-5 and 10-13, all subject will follow a healthy eating pattern diet, referred to as the "my healthy plate" designed by hpb. each subject's energy requirement will be estimated using sex-specific equations and recommended dietary allowances for healthy singaporean. one-on-one dietary counselling and written instructions for each subject will be provided by a research dietitian and trained research staff to achieve a healthy eating pattern diet. compliance with the plant sterols consumption will be promoted by frequent online and in-person contact.

Eligibility criteria:
inclusion criteria: 1. ability to give an informed consent; 2. age\>35 years old; 3. meet any 3 of the 5 following ncep-atp iii mets criteria (waist circumference \> 90 cm (male), \> 80 cm (female); fasting glucose concentration ≥ 100 mg/dl or on medication; triglyceride ≥ 150 mg/dl or on medication; high density lipoprotein cholesterol (hdl) \ 130/80 mmhg or on medication); 4. weight change \< 3kg in the past 3 months; 5. no exercising vigorously over the past 3 months; 6. no allergy to plant sterols; no acute illness; not smoking; 7. no drinking more than 2 alcoholic drinks per day; 8. no pregnant, lactating, or planning pregnancy in the next 6 months. exclusion criteria: 1. unable to give an informed consent; 2. age\<35 years old; 3. meet less than 3 of following ncep-atp iii mets criteria (waist circumference \> 90 cm (male), \> 80 cm (female); fasting glucose concentration ≥ 100 mg/dl or on medication; triglyceride ≥ 150 mg/dl or on medication; high density lipoprotein cholesterol (hdl) \ 130/80 mmhg or on medication); 4. weight change \> 3kg in the past 3 months; 5. exercise vigorously over the past 3 months; 6. allergy to plant sterols; no acute illness; not smoking; 7. drinking more than 2 alcoholic drinks per day; 8. pregnant, lactate, or plan pregnancy in the next 6 months.

Keywords: endothelial function blood pressure healthy diet