07.01.07
The first published human study to confirm that regular use of plant sterol esters capsules are effective in improving lipid profiles without dietary intervention appears online in Lipids in Health and Disease (Lipids Health Dis. 2007, Apr 9; 6(1):11 [Epub]). Cognis Nutrition & Health provided its Vegapure brand plant sterol esters for the trial.
“In just three weeks after taking the plant sterol esters capsules, participants saw their LDL cholesterol drop by a significant 4%, which could translate to a 5-10% reduction in cardiovascular risk in the first 5 years, and by 10% over a lifetime,” said David Cai, PhD, senior scientist, Cognis Nutrition & Health, and an author of the study.
In the study, 16 adults participated in a double-blind, placebo-controlled, sequential study with a 4-week placebo phase, followed by a 2-week wash-out period, and a 4-week intervention phase. During this final part of the study, participants consumed 1.3 grams of Vegapure natural plant sterol esters in capsules each day and were instructed to maintain their normal diets and physical activity. The capsules were manufactured by the Pharmaceutical Technologies and Services group of Cardinal Health in their patented VegiCaps Soft capsule technology to ensure a fully vegetarian dosage form was achieved. Subjects took the minimum amount of sterol esters the FDA requires to satisfy the health claim allowed on foods and dietary supplements containing these heart health ingredients. “This is a dramatic finding when you consider that benefits were shown among those taking a relatively small amount of plant sterol esters without changing their eating or exercise patterns,” Dr. Cai said. “It’s reasonable to surmise that the drop in LDL cholesterol would have been closer to 15% had the subjects combined a healthy lifestyle with daily consumption of 3 grams of plants sterol esters, the amount used in other published research.”
For further information: 800-673-3702.
“In just three weeks after taking the plant sterol esters capsules, participants saw their LDL cholesterol drop by a significant 4%, which could translate to a 5-10% reduction in cardiovascular risk in the first 5 years, and by 10% over a lifetime,” said David Cai, PhD, senior scientist, Cognis Nutrition & Health, and an author of the study.
In the study, 16 adults participated in a double-blind, placebo-controlled, sequential study with a 4-week placebo phase, followed by a 2-week wash-out period, and a 4-week intervention phase. During this final part of the study, participants consumed 1.3 grams of Vegapure natural plant sterol esters in capsules each day and were instructed to maintain their normal diets and physical activity. The capsules were manufactured by the Pharmaceutical Technologies and Services group of Cardinal Health in their patented VegiCaps Soft capsule technology to ensure a fully vegetarian dosage form was achieved. Subjects took the minimum amount of sterol esters the FDA requires to satisfy the health claim allowed on foods and dietary supplements containing these heart health ingredients. “This is a dramatic finding when you consider that benefits were shown among those taking a relatively small amount of plant sterol esters without changing their eating or exercise patterns,” Dr. Cai said. “It’s reasonable to surmise that the drop in LDL cholesterol would have been closer to 15% had the subjects combined a healthy lifestyle with daily consumption of 3 grams of plants sterol esters, the amount used in other published research.”
For further information: 800-673-3702.