Nutrients for preventing coronary heart disease

Nutrients for preventing coronary heart disease.

A recent study explored the effect of supplementation with a fortified diary product containing:

• eicosapentaenoic acid
• docosahexaenoic acid
• oleic acid
• folic acid
• vitamins A, B-6, D, and E.\

Background:

"Certain nutrients have been shown to be effective in preventing coronary heart disease. We hypothesized that a daily intake of low amounts of a number of these nutrients would exert beneficial effects on risk factors and clinical variables in patients that suffered from myocardial infarction (MI) and were following a cardiac rehabilitation program."

Intervention:

"The supplemented group consumed 500 mL/d of a fortified dairy product containing eicosapentaenoic acid, docosahexaenoic acid, oleic acid, folic acid, and vitamins A, B-6, D, and E."

Results:

"Plasma total and LDL-cholesterol, apolipoprotein B, and high-sensitivity C-reactive protein concentrations decreased in the supplemented group (P<0.05), and plasma total homocysteine decreased in both groups. There were no changes in heart rate, blood pressure, or cardiac electrocardiographic parameters in either group."  

Reference:

Carrero JJ, Fonollá J, Marti JL, Jiménez J, Boza JJ, López-Huertas E. Intake of fish oil, oleic acid, folic acid, and vitamins B-6 and E for 1 year decreases plasma C-reactive protein and reduces coronary heart disease risk factors in male patients in a cardiac rehabilitation program. J Nutr. 2007 Feb;137(2):384-90.