A nutrient-dense, high-fiber, fruit-based supplement bar increases HDL cholesterol, particularly large HDL, lowers homocysteine, and raises glutathione in a 2-wk trial.

ABSTRACT: Dietary intake modulates disease risk, but little is known how components within food mixtures affect pathophysiology. A low-calorie, high-fiber, fruit-based nutrient-dense bar of defined composition (e.g., vitamins and minerals, fruit polyphenolics, β-glucan, docosahexaenoic acid) appropriate for deconstruction and mechanistic studies is described and evaluated in a pilot trial. The bar was developed in collaboration with the U.S. Department of Agriculture. Changes in cardiovascular disease and diabetes risk biomarkers were measured after 2 wk twice-daily consumption of the bar, and compared against baseline controls in 25 healthy adults. Plasma HDL-cholesterol (HDL-c) increased 6.2% (P=0.001), due primarily to a 28% increase in large HDL (HDL-L; P<0.0001). Total plasma homocysteine (Hcy)

SUBMITTER: Mietus-Snyder ML 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC3405270 | biostudies-literature | 2012 Aug

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature