05.01.07
The Stanford University School of Medicine, Stanford, CA, will be conducting two studies to examine whether antioxidants and omega 3 fats help prevent heart disease in area residents who are at risk for the condition. Both studies will be led by Christopher Gardner, PhD, assistant professor of medicine at the Stanford Prevention Research Center. The studies will examine how much of these nutrients to take and where to get those nutrients from. In the antioxidant trial specifically, 90 participants will be randomly assigned to take either a supplement containing a combination of antioxidants or a placebo. Additionally, they will be asked to either consume their usual diet or to modify their diet to include foods naturally high in antioxidants, such as berries, broccoli, tomatoes and nuts. During the 8-week study, participants will have their blood drawn three times to assess cholesterol and triglyceride levels, as well as the levels of inflammatory markers that Dr. Gardner claims are e-merging as potentially important risk factors of heart disease. For the omega 3 fats study, 100 eligible participants will be randomly assigned to take either an omega 3 supplement from a plant or a marine source or a placebo. The study will last for 12 weeks, and participants will have their blood drawn five times to as-sess the same risk factors for heart disease being examined in the antioxidant study. Both studies are funded by the National Institutes of Health (NIH), Bethesda, MD.