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Original Research
Estimated Daily Flavonoid and Stilbene Intake from Fruits, Vegetables, and Nuts and Associations with Lipid Profiles in Chinese Adults

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jand.2013.01.018Get rights and content

Abstract

Background

The scientific evidence for the association of daily flavonoid and stilbene intakes with cardiovascular risk factors in Chinese adults has not been reported previously.

Objective

The aim of the study was to assess daily flavonoid and stilbene intakes and evaluate these compounds' association with cardiovascular risk factors such as serum lipids and carotid intima–media thickness in Chinese adults.

Design

A total of 1,393 subjects participated in this cross-sectional study from July 2008 to January 2010 in China. Dietary flavonoid and stilbene intakes as well as overall dietary intakes from foods and beverages were assessed with a quantitative food frequency questionnaire. Anthropometric measurements and cardiovascular risk factors including serum lipids, uric acid, and carotid intima–media thickness were examined. The relationship between flavonoids and stilbene intakes and these cardiovascular risk factors was examined using either partial correlation coefficients or analysis of covariance.

Results

The richest sources of flavonoids and stilbenes were the fruit group including apple, plum, pear, and peach, followed by the vegetable group containing lotus root and taro. The daily intake of total flavonoids, anthocyanidins, flavonols, flavones, isoflavones, and stilbene were 165.6 mg/day, 27.6 mg/day, 123.7 mg/day, 10.7 mg/day, 3.7 mg/day, and 0.3 mg/day, respectively. Higher daily consumption of anthocyanidins was associated with elevated serum high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-C) concentrations (P trend=0.001), and higher total flavonoid and flavonol intakes were associated with lower serum triglycerides (TG) concentrations (P trend=0.020 and P trend=0.035, respectively) and TG/HDL-C ratios (P trend=0.040 and P trend=0.045, respectively) in female subjects. These significant relationships were not found in male subjects.

Conclusions

The daily intakes of flavonoid and stilbene were estimated in the present study, and higher dietary flavonoid intake was associated with improving lipid profile in Chinese women. The results indicate that dietary flavonoids may have beneficial effect on preventing cardiovascular diseases.

Section snippets

Study Subjects

A total of 1,800 subjects were recruited for this cross-sectional study between July 2008 and January 2010 in the southern part of China. Study participants were required to be Guangzhou residents of Chinese origin, age 35 to 75 years old. Subjects were recruited from a community-based population through advertisements, health consultations, and subject referrals. All subjects provided written informed consent to participate in the study. The study was approved by the Ethics Committee of the

Results

A total of 1,393 participants (947 females and 446 males) were included in the study. The demographic characteristics, lifestyle factors, and nutrient intakes for the male, female, and total participants are shown in Table 1. The daily food intake, food sources, and individual components of flavonoids and stilbenes are shown in Table 2. The richest sources of flavonoids were the fruit group containing apple, plum, pear, and peach. Durian, grapes, and citrus were identified as the three top

Discussion

This study provided data on daily intakes of flavonoids and stibenes among a sample of the Chinese population. Intakes of four of six flavonoid subclasses and stilbenes were examined. The results of the present study showed that subjects consumed more flavonoids (165.8 mg/day, including anthocyanidins, flavonols, flavones, and isoflavones) than other adults in French (119.0 mg/day),18 Spanish (41.1 mg/day),25 American (18.6 mg/day),16 English (100.3 mg/day, excluding isoflavones),26 Belgian

Conclusion

Using newly established flavonoid and stilbene food composition values, this study estimated the daily intake of flavonoids and stilbenes among a Chinese population for the first time. The data showed that higher daily consumption of anthocyanidins was associated with greater serum HDL-C concentrations, and higher total flavonoid and flavonol intakes were associated with lower serum TG concentrations and TG/HDL-C ratios in Chinese women. Thus, the present study indicates that a diet that

G. Li is a doctoral student, Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Food, Nutrition and Health, Department of Nutrition, School of Public Health, Sun Yat-Sen University, Guangzhou, Guangdong Province, People's Republic of China, and is also a doctoral student, Center for Stem Cell Biology and Tissue Engineering, Key Laboratory for Stem Cells and Tissue Engineering, Ministry of Education, Sun Yat-Sen University, Guangzhou, Guangdong Province, People's Republic of China.

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    • Cited by (0)

    G. Li is a doctoral student, Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Food, Nutrition and Health, Department of Nutrition, School of Public Health, Sun Yat-Sen University, Guangzhou, Guangdong Province, People's Republic of China, and is also a doctoral student, Center for Stem Cell Biology and Tissue Engineering, Key Laboratory for Stem Cells and Tissue Engineering, Ministry of Education, Sun Yat-Sen University, Guangzhou, Guangdong Province, People's Republic of China.

    Y. Zhu is a lecturer, Department of Maternal and Child Health, at the School of Public Health, Sun Yat-Sen University, Guangzhou, Guangdong Province, People's Republic of China.

    Y. Chen is a professor, Department of Medical Statistics and Epidemiology, at the School of Public Health, Sun Yat-Sen University, Guangzhou, Guangdong Province, People's Republic of China.

    Y. Zhang is a postdoctoral fellow, Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Food, Nutrition and Health, Department of Nutrition, School of Public Health, Sun Yat-Sen University, Guangzhou, Guangdong Province, People's Republic of China, and is a cardiovascular attending physician, Department of Medical Out-patient, Guangzhou Joint Service, Guangzhou, Guangdong Province, People's Republic of China.

    J. Lang is a master's degree student, Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Food, Nutrition and Health, Department of Nutrition, School of Public Health, Sun Yat-Sen University, Guangzhou, Guangdong Province, People's Republic of China.

    W. Ling is a professor, Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Food, Nutrition and Health, Department of Nutrition, School of Public Health, Sun Yat-Sen University, Guangzhou, Guangdong Province, People's Republic of China.

    FUNDING/SUPPORT This work was supported by the 11th 5-year science and technology support program of China (2008BAI58B06, 2009-2010).

    STATEMENT OF POTENTIAL CONFLICT OF INTEREST No potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors.

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