Effects Of Dietary Plant Stanol Ester Margarine And Aerobic Exercise Training On Blood Lipid Concentrations

Abstract

PURPOSE To determine the independent and combined effects of dietary plant stanol ester (PSE) margarine and aerobic exercise training on blood lipid concentrations in 26 healthy sedentary, middle-aged men and postmenopausal women (Age = 53 + 8, BMI = 27±1.0, %FAT= 28.5 ±2). METHOD In a stratified, double blind manner, participants were randomly assigned to either a stanol ester (SEM, n = 17) or a placebo (CON, n = 9) margarine group. Participants supplemented their daily diets with 42 g of a commercially available margarine spread (SEM, PSE = 3 g; CON, PSE = 0 g) for approximately 9 weeks. During the last 4 weeks of margarine supplementation, participants expended 400 kcals on a motor driven treadmill 5 days/week at 65% of VO reserve (2000 kcals/week). Fasting blood samples were obtained prior to initiating and after 4 weeks of margarine supplementation and after exercise training. All blood samples were analyzed for total cholesterol (TC), low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C), triglyceride (TG), high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL -C) and HDL-C subfractions (HDL2&3-C). A 2 (Group) × 3 (Time) ANOVA, repeated for the second factor was used to analyze changes in blood lipid concentrations. RESULTS Baseline physiological characteristics and blood lipid concentrations were not different between groups. TC (−10%), LDL-C (−13%) and TG (−18%) concentrations decreased significantly after 4 weeks of margarine supplementation in the SEM group (p <0.05 for all), but not in the CON group. Four weeks of aerobic exercise did not alter TC, LDL-C or TG concentrations in either group; however, a 10 mg/dL increase in HDL-C in the CON group was significant, whereas, a 2 mg/dL increase in the SEM group did not reach statistical significance. The TC/HDL-C ratio decreased significantly in the SEM group but did not change in the CON group. HDL23-C were not altered with either PSE or exercise. DISCUSSION The combined effects of dietary PSE and exercise is reflected in the modest change in the TC/HDL-C ratio observed in the SEM group and suggest that the combination of these therapeutic lifestyle interventions may be an effective strategy for ameliorating dyslipidemia in healthy middle-age men and women.