Pine Bark Extract Didnt Reduce CVD

CHICAGOPine bark extract was not associated with reduced heart-disease risk factors, in a recent JAMA study (Arch Intern Med. 2010;170[17]:1541-1547). The dosage of 200 mg/d was safe, but did not appear to improve blood pressure or other indices of heart health, such as body mass index (BMI); blood cholesterol levels; liver enzyme test results; size of cholesterol particles; or levels of insulin, lipoprotein(a), fasting glucose and high-sensitivity C-reactive protein (CRP). However, researchers noted variations among participants, dosages and chemical preparations could have affected the findings.

Researchers, lead by  Rebecca L. Drieling, M.P.H., M.M.Q., of Stanford University School of Medicine, Stanford, CA, randomized 130 individuals with increased cardiovascular disease (CVD) risk to take 200 mg of a water-based extract of pine bark (n=64) or a placebo (n=66). The extract used in the study was Toyo-FVG, supplied by Toyo Bio-Pharma, Torrance, CA. They recorded blood pressure (their primary outcome) and other CVD risk factors at baseline, and at six and 12 weeks. Participants were asked not to lose weight, change their diet or begin taking any other medications or supplements during the study.

They found baseline characteristics did not differ between the study groups. Over the 12-week intervention, the sum of systolic and diastolic blood pressures decreased by 1.0 mm Hg (-4.2 to 2.1 mm Hg) in the pine bark extracttreated group and by 1.9mmHg (-5.5 to 1.7mmHg) in the placebo group (P=0.87). They noted the other recorded outcomes were likewise not significantly different between two groups. Additionally, the pine bark extract did not affect CVD factors in any subgroups.

The authors concluded, Although a different dosage or formulation might produce different results, our findings argue against recommending this pine bark extract to improve CVD risk factors."

The research was supported by a research grant from Toyo Shinyaku Co, Ltd, Saga, Japan.