Diets high in saturated fat lead to lower levels of Lp(a)

This study was published in the Journal of Lipid Research 1992 Oct;33(10):1493-501

Study title and authors:
Effect of dietary cis and trans fatty acids on serum lipoprotein[a] levels in humans.

Mensink RP, Zock PL, Katan MB, Hornstra G.
Department of Human Biology, Limburg University, Maastricht, The Netherlands.

This study can be accessed at: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/1431574

The lead author of the study, Professor Ronald Mensink, notes that a high level of lipoprotein[a] (Lp[a]) is a strong risk factor for coronary heart disease.

This study set out to determine the influence of saturated fat, monounsaturated fat, polyunsaturated fat and trans-fat on levels of Lp(a). The study involved three strictly controlled experiments with healthy men and women with normal cholesterol levels.

Experiment 1
58 subjects consumed a control diet high in saturated fat for 17 days. For the next 36 days, 6.5% of total energy intake from saturated fat was replaced by:
(i) Monounsaturated fat plus polyunsaturated fat (monounsaturated fat diet; 29 subjects).
(ii) Polyunsaturated fat alone (polyunsaturated fat diet; 29 subjects).

Experiment 1 results:
(a) In the group that switched from the high saturated fat diet to the monounsaturated fat diet, Lp(a) levels increased by 8.3%.
(b) In the group that switched from the high saturated fat diet to the polyunsaturated fat diet, Lp(a) levels increased by 8.1%.

Experiment 1 shows that higher monounsaturated fat and polyunsaturated fat diets lead to higher Lp(a) levels compared to higher saturated fat diets.

Experiment 2
59 subjects consumed three different diets for three weeks each in random order. The diets differed by their content of saturated fat, monounsaturated fat (oleic acid) or trans-fat (derived from oleic acid).

The diets were composed of:
(i) 19.4% saturated fat, 12.8% monounsaturated fat, 1.8% trans-fat. (High saturated fat diet).
(ii) 9.5% saturated fat, 23.0% monounsaturated fat, no trans-fat. (High monounsaturated fat diet).
(iii) 10.0% saturated fat, 12.6% monounsaturated fat, 10.9% trans-fat. (High trans-fat diet).

Experiment 2 results:
(a) The Lp(a) levels of those on the high monounsaturated fat diet were 23.0% higher than those on the high saturated fat diet.
(b) The Lp(a) levels of those on the high trans-fat diet were 73.1% higher than those on the high saturated fat diet.

Experiment 2 shows that higher monounsaturated fat and trans-fat diets lead to higher Lp(a) levels compared to higher saturated fat diets.

Experiment 3
56 subjects consumed three different diets for three weeks each in random order. The diets differed by their content of saturated fat, polyunsaturated fat (linoleic acid) or trans-fat (elaidic acid).

The diets composed of:
(i) 20.1% saturated fat, 4.3% polyunsaturated fat, 0.3% trans-fat. (High saturated fat diet).
(ii) 11.0% saturated fat, 12.5% polyunsaturated fat, 0.1% trans-fat. (High polyunsaturated fat diet).
(iii) 10.3% saturated fat, 3.8% polyunsaturated fat, 7.7% trans-fat. (High trans-fat diet).

Experiment 3 results:
(a) The Lp(a) levels of those on the high polyunsaturated fat diet were the same as those on the high saturated fat diet.
(b) The Lp(a) levels of those on the high trans-fat diet were 23.2% higher than those on the high saturated fat diet.

Experiment 3 shows that higher trans-fat diets lead to higher Lp(a) levels compared to higher polyunsaturated fat and saturated fat diets.

Taken as a whole these three experiments show that a diet high in saturated fat leads to lower levels of Lp(a) compared to diets high in polyunsaturated fat, monounsaturated fat and trans-fat.

Please watch the following informative youtube clip, "Enjoy Eating Saturated Fats: They're Good for You. Donald W. Miller, Jr., M.D.", by Dr Donald W Miller. Dr Miller is a heart surgeon and practices and teaches heart surgery at the University of Washington and at the Swedish Medical Center. Dr Miller has published three books; "The Practice of Coronary Artery Bypass Surgery", "Atlas of Cardiac Surgery" and "Heart in Hand".

The youtube clip, which lasts for 53 minutes, can be accessed at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vRe9z32NZHY

Soy consumption increases Lp(a), an independent risk factor for heart disease

This post includes a synopsis of a study published in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition Vol. 69, No. 3, 419-425, March 1999 and a recipe for sausage spaghetti in creamy tomato sauce.

Study title and authors:
Lipoprotein(a) and dietary proteins: casein lowers lipoprotein(a) concentrations as compared with soy protein
Karin Nilausen and Hans Meinertz

This study can be accessed at: http://www.ajcn.org/content/69/3/419.abstract
 
Nilausen notes that lipoprotein(a) [Lp(a)], an independent risk factor for coronary artery disease. See here and here.
 

Books:

The study compared the effects of dietary soy protein and casein on plasma Lp(a) concentrations. Men with normal cholesterol were studied initially while consuming their habitual, self-selected diets and then they consumed liquid-formula diets containing either casein or soy protein. 

The study found:
(a) After 30 days Lp(a) decreased by an average of 50% after the casein diet as compared with concentrations after both the soy-protein and self-selected diets.
(b) Two weeks after subjects switched from the self-selected to the soy-protein diet, Lp(a) increased by 20%. In contrast, the switch to the casein diet caused a decrease in Lp(a) levels of 65%.

To conclude: These findings indicate that soy protein may have an Lp(a)-raising effect which is an independent risk factor for heart disease.

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Recipe of the day

Sausage Spaghetti in Creamy Tomato Sauce

Ingredients:

Food Mall: Sausage

1.25 lbs sausage, diced
3 small leeks, diced

½ red onion, diced
1 red bell pepper, sliced thin
1 – 14oz can of artichoke hearts packed in water, cut into quarters
1 tablespoon coconut oil
5 zucchini squash, sliced thin like noodles

Sauce:
1 – 14.5 oz can of organic diced tomatoes
2 tablespoons coconut cream
1 teaspoon crushed garlic
2 tablespoons fresh rosemary, minced
Black pepper and sea salt to taste

Instructions:
In a large skillet or wok heat the coconut oil. If you are using raw meat, brown the meat in the coconut oil and add the onion, leeks, and bell peppers. If you are using pre-cooked sausages like we did, cook the onions, leeks and bell peppers first in the coconut oil until tender and then add the meat and cook for another 3-4 minutes or until the sausage is warmed through. In a small sauce pan mix together the can of diced tomatoes with the juice with the coconut cream concentrate. Bring to a simmer and add the remaining sauce ingredients and mix well. To the meat and veggies add the zucchini and artichokes and pour the sauce over. Mix well and cook for another 5-6 minutes, just until the zucchini al dente – do not over cook or they will turn to mush.

Sausage Spaghetti in Creamy Tomato Sauce



Low fat, high carbohydrate diets increase the risk of heart disease

This post includes a synopsis on a study published in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, Vol. 85, No. 6, 1527-1532, June 2007 and a recipe for baked chicken with pomegranate glaze.

Study title and authors:
Increased plasma concentrations of lipoprotein(a) during a low-fat, high-carbohydrate diet are associated with increased plasma concentrations of apolipoprotein C-III bound to apolipoprotein B–containing lipoproteins1,2,3
Min-Jeong Shin, Patricia J Blanche, Robin S Rawlings, Harriett S Fernstrom and Ronald M Krauss
1 From the Children's Hospital Oakland Research Institute, Oakland, CA

                                                                                                                                              Books:

This study can be accessed at: http://www.ajcn.org/content/85/6/1527.abstract

In this study 140 healthy men consumed for 4 weeks either:

(1) a high-fat, low-carbohydrate diet (HFLC diet 40% fat, 45% carbohydrate)

(2) a low-fat, high carbohydrate diet (LFHC diet 20% fat, 65% carbohydrate)

The study found that concentrations of Lp(a), triglycerides, ApoB, Apo C-III were all higher on the low fat, high carbohydrate diet compared to a high fat, low carbohydrate diet.

All 4 of these values on the low fat, high carbohydrate diet indicate an increased risk of heart disease:
Lp(a) See here
Triglycerides See here
ApoB See here
Apo C-III See here

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Recipe of the day

Baked Chicken with Pomegranate Glaze

Ingredients:
-1 large lemon                                                                                            Food Mall: Whole Chicken

-2 sprigs fresh rosemary

-1 (5-pound) whole chicken

-2 cups unsweetened pomegranate juice

-1 tablespoon Dijon mustard

-1/2 teaspoon finely chopped garlic

-2 tablespoons plus 1 teaspoon arrowroot

-1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

-Seeds from 1 pomegranate

Method:

Preheat oven to 375°F.

Pierce lemon in several places with a fork and place whole, along with rosemary, inside chicken cavity.

Tie chicken legs together and place in a roasting pan. Combine juice, mustard, garlic and arrowroot for basting. Pour mixture over chicken, and sprinkle with black pepper. Bake 20 minutes and baste. Bake another 20 minutes, and baste again.

Add pomegranate seeds. Reduce heat to 350°F and bake another hour, basting every 20 minutes.

Pour off liquid and reserve. Let chicken rest 15 minutes under a foil tent. Skim fat off reserved liquid.

Carve chicken and serve with reserved glaze.

Low fat/high carbohydrate diets lead to an increase in (bad) cholesterol

This post includes a synopsis of a study published in The Journal of Lipid Research, 51, 3324-3330 November 2010 and a recipe for a succulent bison roast.

Study title and authors:
Changes in lipoprotein(a), oxidized phospholipids, and LDL subclasses with a low-fat high-carbohydrate diet
Nastaran Faghihnia*, Sotirios Tsimikas†, Elizabeth R. Miller†, Joseph L. Witztum† and Ronald M. Krauss*,1
*Department of Atherosclerosis Research, Children's Hospital Oakland Research Institute, Oakland, CA
†Department of Medicine,† University of California, San Diego, La Jolla, CA

This paper can be accessed at: http://www.jlr.org/content/51/11/3324.abstract
                                                                                                                                            Books:

The study compared the effects of 2 diets on different types of cholesterol in 63 healthy subjects over a 4 week period.

The diets were:
(i) 20% fat, 65% carbohydrate, 15% protein (low-fat, high carbohydrate diet).
(ii) 40% fat, 45% carbohydrate, 15% protein (high-fat, low-carbohydrate diet).

The study found that:
(a) The (bad) Lp(a) levels increased by 11.8% on the low fat/high carbohydrate diet compared to the highfat/low carbohydrate diet.
(b) The (bad) apolipoprotein (apo)B levels increased by 5.6% on the low fat/high carbohydrate diet compared to the highfat/low carbohydrate diet.
(c) LDL cholesterol particle size decreased to a (bad) smaller size on the low fat/high carbohydrate diet compared to the highfat/low carbohydrate diet.
(d) The total number of (bad) very low density lipoprotein (VLDL) particles increased by 24% on the low fat/high carbohydrate diet compared to the highfat/low carbohydrate diet.
(e) The (bad) triglyceride levels increased by 23% on the low fat/high carbohydrate diet compared to the highfat/low carbohydrate diet.
(f) The (good) high density lipoprotein (HDL) levels were 11% lower on the low fat/high carbohydrate diet compared to the highfat/low carbohydrate diet.
(g) The (good) Apo A-1 levels were 5% lower on the low fat/high carbohydrate diet compared to the highfat/low carbohydrate diet.

The changes in the above cholesterol levels by the low fat/high carbohydrate diet are associated with an inreased heart disease risk. See here and here.

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Recipe of the day

Succulent Bison Roast
                                                                                                                             Food Mall: Bison
Ingredients:

■2 pounds bison tri-tip

■2 tablespoons Herbes de Provence (or other spices of your choice)

■1 teaspoon dried minced garlic (don’t use fresh or it might burn)
■1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
■2 tablespoons oil
■1 white or yellow onion, sliced
■1 each parsnip, turnip and rutabaga, cubed

Instructions:
Preheat oven to 450 degrees Fahrenheit.

Using a knife, carefully slice most of the silver skin off the meat. The silver skin is the thin, white layer covering parts of the roast.

In a small bowl mix together Herbes de Provence, garlic, salt and oil.

Rub the entire roast with the mixture then stick a thermometer into the thickest part of the roast. In a roasting pan, surround the meat with the chopped vegetables. Lightly drizzle the vegetables with oil then put the pan, uncovered, in the oven for 15 minutes.

Reduce oven heat to 300 degrees and cook the meat for approximately 35-45 minutes more, or until the thermometer reaches 140-145 degrees. The meat in the photo, cooked rare, was taken out of the oven at 140 degrees.

Remove the meat from the oven but leave the oven on so the vegetables can continue to cook. Let the meat rest on a cutting board for 15 minutes, uncovered or very lightly covered with foil. Remove the vegetables from the oven, slice the meat thinly, and serve.

Saturated fat lowers (bad) Lp(a) cholesterol levels

This post includes a synopsis of a study published in Arteriosclerosis, Thrombosis, and Vascular Biology 1997;17:1657-1661 and a recipe for grilled or fried skirt steak.

Study title and authors:
Plasma Lipoprotein (a) Levels in Men and Women Consuming Diets Enriched in Saturated, Cis-, or Trans-Monounsaturated Fatty Acids
Beverly A. Clevidence; Joseph T. Judd; Ernst J. Schaefer; Jennifer L. Jenner; Alice H. Lichtenstein; Richard A. Muesing; Janet Wittes; ; Matthew E. Sunkin
From the Diet and Human Performance Laboratory, Beltsville Human Nutrition Research Center, Agricultural Research Service, USDA (B.A.C., J.T.-J., M.E.S.), Beltsville, MD; Lipid Metabolism Laboratory, the Jean Mayer USDA Human Nutrition Research Center on Aging at Tufts University (E.J.S., J.L.-J., A.H.L.), Boston, MA; The Lipid Research Clinic (R.A.M.), The George Washington University Medical Center, Washington, DC; and Statistics Collaborative (J.W.), Washington, DC.

This paper can be accessed at: http://atvb.ahajournals.org/cgi/content/abstract/atvbaha;17/9/1657

High lipoprotein (a) [Lp(a)] cholesterol levels are associated with heart disease. See here and here.
                                                                                                                                           Books:

The study determined the effect on Lp(a) levels by 4 different diets on 29 men and 29 women. The diets consisted of:

(1) A high monounsaturated diet

(2) A moderate trans fat diet
(3) A high trans fat diet
(4) A high saturated fat diet

The study revealed that the saturated fat diet lowered Lp(a) levels significantly (by 8% to 11%) and therefore reduced heart disease risk.

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Recipe of the day

Grilled or Fried Skirt Steak

Ingredients:                                                                                            Food Mall: Beef Skirt Steak

2 pounds beef skirt steak

1 pinch salt and pepper to taste

Directions:
Preheat a grill or large skillet for medium-high heat.

Grill or fry steaks for about 5 minutes per side, or to your desired degree of doneness. Remove from the heat, and let the meat rest for 5 to 10 minutes to let the juices settle.

Cut each steak along the grain into 3 or 4 pieces.