This meta- analysis concludes that l-arginine supplementation can significantly reduce blood TAG levels ; however , there is insufficient evidence to support its hypocholesterolaemic effects .
A number of clinical trials have examined the effect of l-arginine on lipid profile in recent years ; however , the results remain equivocal .
Therefore , the present study aims to summarise and quantitatively examine the available evidence on the effectiveness l-arginine supplementation on lipid parameters using a systematic review and meta-analytic approach .
L-Arginine enhances the triglyceride-lowering effect of simvastatin in patients with elevated plasma triglycerides.
We recently noticed a possible triglyceride-lowering effect during dietary supplementation with L-arginine . The major limitation of prior studies on L-arginine , however , was that triglyceride levels were not the primary end point , and patients were not necessarily hypertriglyceridemic . Therefore , we conducted a 2-arm , r and omized , double-blind study in 33 hypertriglyceridemic patients to investigate the hypothesis that oral L-arginine may lower serum triglyceride levels in hypertriglyceridemic patients on and off statins .  The study consisted of a 6-week run-in phase , 6 weeks of treatment with L-arginine ( n = 22 , 1.5 g bid ) or placebo ( n = 11 ) , and a 6-week extension period where simvastatin ( 20 mg qd ) was added . All patients received dietary advice during each study visit . Routine and lipid laboratory parameters were determined in the local routine clinical laboratory . Treatment with L-arginine alone had no effects on serum lipids compared to placebo . The combination of L-arginine with simvastatin led to a significantly stronger reduction in triglycerides compared to placebo plus simvastatin ( -140.5 + /- 149.2 mg/dL vs -56.1 + /- 85.0 mg/dL ; P = .048 ) . In addition , we found simvastatin-induced  increases in aspartate transaminase and fibrinogen to be attenuated by L-arginine as compared to placebo . We conclude from our data that L-arginine enhances the effects of simvastatin on lipid metabolism , but it has no triglyceride-lowering effects when given alone
This meta- analysis concludes that l-arginine supplementation can significantly reduce blood TAG levels ; however , there is insufficient evidence to support its hypocholesterolaemic effects .
A number of clinical trials have examined the effect of l-arginine on lipid profile in recent years ; however , the results remain equivocal .
Therefore , the present study aims to summarise and quantitatively examine the available evidence on the effectiveness l-arginine supplementation on lipid parameters using a systematic review and meta-analytic approach .