Hadley, MA—A combination of vitamin E (delta tocotrienols), antioxidant polyphenols and niacin may support heart health by reducing inflammation.

Researchers from the University of Missouri-Kansas City and also Army Medical College in Pakistan conducted a trials to see whether a combination of natural compounds (including delta tocotrienols, quercetin, resveratrol, pterostilbene and niacin—all proteasome inhibitors) affected nitric oxide, c-reactive protein (CRP), triglyceride and cholesterol levels.

Thirty-two healthy seniors participated in the study along with 64 seniors with high cholesterol, each divided into two groups. For six weeks, half of the healthy and half of the high-cholesterol participants received the nutrients, while the others took a placebo. After a two-week washout period, the groups changed regimens for another six weeks.

For the healthy individuals, blood levels of nitric oxide and CRP decreased significantly (by 30% and 26% for each group), and blood pressure also decreased. The results were even more profound for both of the high-cholesterol senior groups; serum levels of nitric oxide went down (36%, 43%), as did CRP (31%, 48%), gamma-glutamyl-transferase (17%, 20%), total cholesterol (19%, 15%), LDL cholesterol (28%, 20%), triglycerides (11%, 18%) and total antioxidant status (10%, 14%).

“Long-term, moderate consumption of these specific compounds could play an important role in their cardio-protective actions,” stated lead researcher Asaf Qureshi of the University of Missouri-Kansas City.

Added Barrie Tan, president of American River Nutrition Inc., “This is the first study to address the two faces of cardiovascular diseases simultaneously, namely lipids and inflammation.”

The vitamin E delta-tocotrienol used in the study was sourced from annatto (as DeltaGold, American River Nutrition, Inc., based here). The data are published in the Journal of Clinical and Experimental Cardiology.

Published in WholeFoods Magazine, September 2013 (online 7/2/13)