Double-blind, randomized feedback control fails to improve the hypocholesterolemic effect of a plant-based low-fat diet in patients with moderately elevated total cholesterol levels

• Published in: European journal of clinical nutrition 2004-10, Vol.58 (10), p.1402-1409
• Main Authors: Koebnick, C, Plank-Habibi, S, Wirsam, B, Gruendel, S, Hahn, A, Meyer-Kleine, C, Leitzmann, C, Zunft, H J F
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Aged; Biological and medical sciences; Blood; Cholesterol; Cholesterol - blood; Cholesterol - metabolism; Cholesterol, LDL - blood; Clinical Nutrition; Control systems; Design; Diet; Diet, Fat-Restricted; Dietary Fats - administration & dosage; Dietary fiber; Diseases of the cardiovascular system; Double-Blind Method; Double-blind studies; Energy; Epidemiology; Feedback; Feedback control; Female; Flowers & plants; Humans; Hypercholesterolemia - diet therapy; Internal Medicine; Intervention; Low density lipoprotein; Low fat diet; Male; Medical sciences; Medicine; Medicine & Public Health; Metabolic Diseases; Middle Aged; Nutrient deficiency; original-communication; Patients; Plants, Edible; Public Health; Radiotherapy. Instrumental treatment. Physiotherapy. Reeducation. Rehabilitation, orthophony, crenotherapy. Diet therapy and various other treatments (general aspects); Reduction; Statistical analysis; Technical colleges; Treatment Outcome; Triglycerides; Triglycerides - blood
• ISSN: 0954-3007; 1476-5640
• DOI: 10.1038/sj.ejcn.1601984

Objective : To determine whether the cholesterol-lowering effect of a plant-based low-fat diet can be improved by a flexible control design that controls the extent of fat reduction based on the individual response of blood cholesterol. Design : Randomized, double-blind intervention study. Setting : A hotel in Prerow, Germany. Subjects : A total of 32 participants (21 female and 11 male participants) with total cholesterol level>5.7 mmol/l. Intervention : The control group consumed a plant-based low-fat diet with constantly 20% of energy as fat; the intervention group received a diet with either 20 or 15% of energy as fat, depending on the serum cholesterol response of the preceding week. A flexible control design based on the individual cholesterol response during a run-in period of 1 week was used within a low-fat intervention. Results : During the run-in period, the consumption of a plant-based low-fat diet led to a reduction in total cholesterol by 18±6 mmol/l ( P