Abstract
Angelica gigas Nakai, Korean dang-gui, has long been widely used in traditional treatment methods. There have been a number of studies of the health effects of A. gigas and related compounds, but studies addressing effects on blood triglycerides (TG) are lacking. To investigate the effects of A. gigas Nakai extract (AGNE) on TG in Korean subjects, we carried out a 12-week, randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled clinical trial. Subjects who met the inclusion criterion (130 mg/dL ≤ fasting blood TG ≤ 200 mg/dL) were recruited for this study. One hundred subjects were assigned to the AGNE group (n = 50) or the placebo group (n = 50), who were given 1 g/day of AGNE (as a gigas Nakai extract 200 mg/d) in capsules and the control group for 12 weeks. Outcomes were efficacy TG, lipid profiles, atherogenic index, and safety parameters were assessed initially for a baseline measurement and after 12 weeks. After 12 weeks of supplementation, TG and very low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (VLDL-C) concentration and TG/HDL-C ratio in the AGNE group were significantly reduced compared to the placebo group (p < 05). No significant changes in any safety parameter were observed. These results suggest that the ingestion of AGNE may improve TG and be useful to manage or prevent hypertriglyceridemia.
Highlights
The prevalence of metabolic disease is increasing dramatically due to changes in diet and lifestyle over the last few decades
We found that TG concentration was reduced after ANGE supplementation in the high fat diet mouse model, and that the greatest improvement in TG concentration was noted in mice receiving ANGE 40 mg/kg [18]
Four subjects withdrew consent during the study, and one subject with serious adverse effects and another using a prohibited drug were eliminated from the study, and one subject was excluded from the analysis because of an unmeasured efficacy factor
Summary
The prevalence of metabolic disease is increasing dramatically due to changes in diet and lifestyle over the last few decades. Hypertriglyceridemia is usually treated using lipid lowering agents, such as fibrate, niacin, bile acid-binding resin, and statins [2,3] These treatments are reported to be accompanied by numerous side effects, such as diarrhea, severe muscle damage, dry skin, and liver dysfunction [4,5,6]. These side effects have led a growing number of people to seek natural remedies, including functional foods and dietary choices, that may help to improve the lipid profile with minimal side effects [7]. These days, people are highly interested in healthy living and in the prevention and treatment of chronic diseases; as a result of Nutrients 2020, 12, 377; doi:10.3390/nu12020377 www.mdpi.com/journal/nutrients
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