Plant sterol foods may provide doctors with a useful alternative to higher dose statins to reduce their patients’ LDL cholesterol, according to a new study presented at EAS yesterday.
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Researchers compared the effects of the plant sterol-ester-enriched spread, Flora pro.activ, and statin medication on the LDL cholesterol of hypercholesterolaemic patients. Subjects consumed 25g per day of Flora pro.activ over a four-week trial period.
The plant sterol-ester-enriched spread, Flora pro.activ, actively reduced LDL cholesterol by 8% in both those receiving statins and those who did not, it is claimed.
Professor John Betteridge, Consultant Physician, University College London, said: “These findings are significant for doctors looking to dietary alternatives for an additive LDL cholesterol reduction on top of statin medication. Introducing Flora pro.activ into the diet is an easy lifestyle choice for patients to make. This data also support earlier studies demonstrating the additive benefits of consuming plant sterol spreads in combination with statins”.
The study was undertaken at the University of New South Wales Lipid Research Department, St Vincent’s Hospital, Sydney, Australia. The subjects were divided into four parallel treatment groups and either received:
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By GlobalData- Statin plus plant sterol spread;
- Statin plus regular spread;
- Plant sterol spread plus placebo; or
- Regular spread plus placebo.
The effects of these different treatments on blood LDL cholesterol levels were then compared.
Professor Leon Simons of the Lipid Research Department, St Vincent’s Hospital said: “These findings are particularly good news for doctors keen to find a dietary complement to statins for their patients. The 8% LDL reduction we saw is equivalent to a doubling in the dose of statin.”
*EAS (European Atherosclerosis Society) Salzburg, Austria, 7-10 July 2002:
