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Saturated fat increases LDL despite red, white meat consumption
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White and red meat consumption had similar effects on blood cholesterol levels in patients with high saturated fat intakes, according to data from the APPROACH trial published in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition.
“Our results indicate that current advice to restrict red meat and not white meat should not be based only on their effects on blood cholesterol,” Ronald M. Krauss, MD, senior scientist and director of atherosclerosis research at the Children’s Hospital Oakland Research Institute in California, said in a press release. “Indeed, other effects of red meat consumption could contribute to heart disease, and these effects should be explored in more detail in an effort to improve health.”
High vs. low saturated fats
Nathalie Bergeron, PhD, professor and chair of biological and pharmaceutical sciences at Touro University California College of Pharmacy, and colleagues analyzed data from patients aged 21 to 65 years who met criteria such as BP less than 150/90 mm Hg, BMI between 20 kg/m2 and 35 kg/m2 and total and LDL cholesterol less than the 95th percentile for age and sex.
Patients were assigned a diet with high (n = 62) or low saturated fatty acid content (n = 51). Each group contained experimental diets to assess the effects of substituting red meat for nonmeat sources of protein or white meat. A 2-week diet at baseline tested patients’ compliance to the controlled dietary protocol before randomization. The assigned diet was given to patients for a 4-week period. Patients consumed their regular diet for 2 to 7 weeks before crossing over to another assigned diet. Blood samples were collected after each assigned diet to assess apolipoproteins, plasma lipids, glucose and lipoprotein particle subfractions. Other measurements taken at this time included BP, body weight, body fat percentage, hip and waist circumference, and endothelial function.
The primary outcomes of interest were apolipoprotein B, LDL, small and medium LDL, and total/HDL cholesterol ratio.
Compared with nonmeat consumption, red and white meat consumption increased ApoB and LDL levels independent of saturated fatty acid content (P < .0001 for all). ApoB was higher for red meat consumption compared with nonmeat consumption (P = .0004). This may have been associated with increases in large LDL particles. Total/HDL cholesterol and small and medium LDL were unaffected by the protein source (P = .51, P = .1, respectively).
No difference in outcomes
There were no significant differences in primary outcomes of interest between red and white meat consumption.
The high saturated fatty acid diet increased ApoB (P = .0002), LDL (P = .0003) and large LDL (P = .0002) compared with the low saturated fatty acid diet independent of protein source.
“Future studies should test the effects of [saturated fatty acid] content and dietary protein source on atherogenic lipoprotein indices as well as clinical CVD outcomes in individuals with hyperlipidemia,” Bergeron and colleagues wrote. – by Darlene Dobkowski
Disclosures: Krauss reports he holds a licensed patent for ion mobility analyses. Bergeron and other authors report no relevant financial disclosures.
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