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Review
. 2018 Nov 2;10(11):1630.
doi: 10.3390/nu10111630.

Influence of Bioactive Nutrients on the Atherosclerotic Process: A Review

Rosa Casas  1   2 , Ramon Estruch  3   4 , Emilio Sacanella  5   6
Affiliations
Review

Influence of Bioactive Nutrients on the Atherosclerotic Process: A Review

Rosa Casas et al. Nutrients. .

Abstract

The protective effects of a dietary intervention as a useful tool in the prevention of atherosclerosis disease has gained greater attention in recent years. Several epidemiological studies have demonstrated the importance of diet in reducing expensive treatments or possible undesirable side effects. The main aim of this review is to examine the effects of specific nutrients on the development and progression of atherosclerosis in patients with cardiovascular disease. Various mechanisms have been proposed to explain the cardioprotective effect of different nutrients. In this sense, results have shown stabilization of vulnerable atherosclerotic plaques or downregulation of biomarkers related to inflammation through nutrients such as Omega-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids, hydroxytyrosol of extra virgin olive oil, lycopen, phytosterols of plants, or flavonols of fruits and vegetables, among others. The accumulated evidence on the anti-inflammatory effects related to these nutrients is summarized in the present review.

Keywords: CVD; PUFA; atherosclerosis; bioactive compounds; hydroxytyrosol; inflammation; nutrients; phytosterols; polyphenols.

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Conflict of interest statement

R.E. reports serving on the board of and receiving lecture fees from the Research Foundation on Wine and Nutrition (FIVIN); serving on the boards of the Beer and Health Foundation and the European Foundation for Alcohol Research (ERAB); receiving lecture fees from Cerveceros de España and Sanofi-Aventis; and receiving grant support through his institution from Novartis. No other potential conflict of interest relevant to this article was reported.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Summary of the main health effects of the nutrients described and their potential effects on the prevention of atherosclerosis. Abbreviations: AtherOx: oxidized low-density lipoprotein (LDL)-β2 glycoprotein1 complex; FMD: flow-mediated dilatation; HDL-c: high-density lipoprotein cholesterol; IMT: intima-media thickness; LDL-c: low-density lipoprotein-cholesterol; NF-κβ: nuclear factor κβ; SBP: systolic blood pressure; sTAC: serum total antioxidant capacity.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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