MUFA-Rich Diet Lowers BP

MUFA-Rich Diet Lowers BP

AARHUS, DenmarkConsumption of monounsaturated fatty acids (MUFAs)lowers blood pressure (BP), according to results of a clinical trial publishedin the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition (83, 2:221-6, 2006)(www.ajcn.org).

In the three-month, randomized study, healthy subjects (n=162) followedisoenergetic diets rich in either MUFAs or in saturated fatty acids (SFA diet).In addition, test subjects from both groups were randomly assigned to receivefish oil (3.6 g/d omega-3 fatty acids) or placebo. Consumption of the MUFA dietwas associated with lowered systolic BP (SBP) and significantly reduceddiastolic BP (DBP), the SFA diet produced no change in BP. Fish oilsupplementation influenced neither SBP nor DBP.

The researchers concluded changing dietary fat profile by decreasing SFAs andincreasing MUFAs decreased diastolic BP, and the addition of omega-3 fatty acidsto the diet had no significant effect on BP.