Blueberries Support Heart Health

NOVA SCOTIA, Canada—Blueberries may support cardiovascular health by lowering cholesterol (Br J Nutr. 2007;100(1):70-80). Two feeding trials were conducted with pigs; in the first trial, where basal diets contained a high level of plant-based components (70 percent soy, oats and barley), supplementation with 1, 2 and 4 percent blueberries resulted in a decrease in total low density lipoprotein (LDL) and high density lipoprotein (HDL) cholesterol. The greatest reduction was observed in the 2 percent blueberry-fed pigs, where total, LDL- and HDL-cholesterol were reduced 11.7, 15.1 and 8.3 percent, respectively. In the second trial, where basal diets contained only 20 percent (w/w) of soya, oats and barley, the lipid-modulating effect of blueberries was attenuated, so that supplementation with 1.5 percent blueberries reduced total cholesterol by 8 percent, which occurred only in pigs whose diets had been supplemented with cholesterol (0.08 percent), NaCl (0.11 percent) and fructose (9 percent). In the first feeding trial, blueberry supplementation had no effect on blood platelet activity; it also had no effect on the susceptibility of leucocyte DNA to oxidation in the first trial, and no effect on the susceptibility of LDL to oxidation in the second trial.