Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
Randomized Controlled Trial
. 2015 Jun 17:14:61.
doi: 10.1186/s12937-015-0049-5.

Effect of almond consumption on vascular function in patients with coronary artery disease: a randomized, controlled, cross-over trial

C-Y Oliver Chen  1   2 , Monika Holbrook  3 , Mai-Ann Duess  4 , Mustali M Dohadwala  5 , Naomi M Hamburg  6 , Bela F Asztalos  7 , Paul E Milbury  8 , Jeffrey B Blumberg  9 , Joseph A Vita  10
Affiliations
Randomized Controlled Trial

Effect of almond consumption on vascular function in patients with coronary artery disease: a randomized, controlled, cross-over trial

C-Y Oliver Chen et al. Nutr J. .

Abstract

Objective: Almonds reduce cardiovascular disease risk via cholesterol reduction, anti-inflammation, glucoregulation, and antioxidation. The objective of this randomized, controlled, cross-over trial was to determine whether the addition of 85 g almonds daily to a National Cholesterol Education Program (NCEP) Step 1 diet (ALM) for 6 weeks would improve vascular function and inflammation in patients with coronary artery disease (CAD).

Research design and methods: A randomized, controlled, crossover trial was conducted in Boston, MA to test whether as compared to a control NCEP Step 1 diet absent nuts (CON), incorporation of almonds (85 g/day) into the CON diet (ALM) would improve vascular function and inflammation. The study duration was 22 weeks including a 6-weeks run-in period, two 6-weeks intervention phases, and a 4-weeks washout period between the intervention phases. A total of 45 CAD patients (27 F/18 M, 45-77 y, BMI = 20-41 kg/m(2)) completed the study. Drug therapies used by patients were stable throughout the duration of the trial.

Results: The addition of almonds to the CON diet increased plasma α-tocopherol status by a mean of 5.8%, reflecting patient compliance (P ≤0.05). However, the ALM diet did not alter vascular function assessed by measures of flow-mediated dilation, peripheral arterial tonometry, and pulse wave velocity. Further, the ALM diet did not significantly modify the serum lipid profile, blood pressure, C-reactive protein, tumor necrosis factor-α or E-selectin. The ALM diet tended to decrease vascular cell adhesion molecule-1 by 5.3% (P = 0.064) and increase urinary nitric oxide by 17.5% (P = 0.112). The ALM intervention improved the overall quality of the diet by increasing calcium, magnesium, choline, and fiber intakes above the Estimated Average Requirement (EAR) or Recommended Dietary Allowance (RDA).

Conclusions: Thus, the addition of almonds to a NECP Step 1 diet did not significantly impact vascular function, lipid profile or systematic inflammation in CAD patients receiving good medical care and polypharmacy therapies but did improve diet quality without any untoward effect.

Trial registration: The trial was registered with the ClinicalTrials.Gov with the identifier: NCT00782015.

PubMed Disclaimer

Figures

Fig. 1
Fig. 1
CONSORT flow diagram
See this image and copyright information in PMC

References

    1. World Health Organization. The top 10 causes of death - Major causes of death [http://www.who.int/mediacentre/factsheets/fs310/en/index2.html]
    1. Booth JN, 3rd, Levitan EB, Brown TM, Farkouh ME, Safford MM, Muntner P. Effect of Sustaining Lifestyle Modifications (Nonsmoking, Weight Reduction, Physical Activity, and Mediterranean Diet) After Healing of Myocardial Infarction, Percutaneous Intervention, or Coronary Bypass (from the REasons for Geographic and Racial Differences in Stroke Study) Am J Cardiol. 2014;113:1933–1940. doi: 10.1016/j.amjcard.2014.03.033. - DOI - PMC - PubMed
    1. Keys A. Diet and the epidemiology of coronary heart disease. JAMA. 1957;164:1912–1919. doi: 10.1001/jama.1957.62980170024007e. - DOI - PubMed
    1. Keys A. Seven Countries: A Multivariate Analysis of Death and Coronary Heart Disease. Cambridge, MA, and London, England: Harvard University Press Cambridge; 1980.
    1. Dalen JE, Devries S. Diets to prevent coronary heart disease 1957–2013: what have we learned? Am J Med. 2014;127:364–369. doi: 10.1016/j.amjmed.2013.12.014. - DOI - PubMed

Publication types

MeSH terms

Associated data