Effects of Supplementation With Linseed Oil on Blood Lipids in Vegetarians

Effects of Supplementation With Linseed Oil on Blood Lipids and Fatty Acid Profile in Plasma and Erythrocyte Lipids in Vegetarians

The study was performed to investigate the effects of a daily consumption of linseed oil on fatty acid distribution in plasma and red blood cell lipids and blood lipids in vegetarians.

Study Overview

• Status: Completed
• Conditions: Inter-conversion n-3 PUFA, Vegetarians
• Intervention / Treatment: Dietary supplement: Linseed oil

Detailed Description

Recent studies suggest that the daily intake of n-3 LC-PUFA (EPA and DHA) can modulate cardiovascular risk factors and prevent lifestyle diseases.

The major dietary source of EPA and DHA is seafood (seaweeds and fatty cold water fishes), but they can also be found in lean red meat, in organ meats such as liver and brain. Vegetarians who do not eat meat or fish, have very low or negligible intakes of EPA (< 5 mg EPA/d) and DHA.

The purpose of the present study is to explore the tissue distribution and inter-conversion of ALA to n-3 LC-PUFA as consequence of linseed oil supplementation in vegetarians.

Eight vegetarians (3 m; 5 f) who do not eat meat, fish or seaweeds such as algae foods since least two years ago and two subjects (1 m; 1w) who consume the normal western style diet living in Jena (Germany) entered the study. The participants consumed 10 mL linseed oil per day for 10 weeks. The resulting daily dose of ALA was approx. 5.7 g/d.

• Study Type: Interventional
• Enrollment (Actual): 10
• Phase: Not Applicable

Participation Criteria

Eligibility Criteria

• Ages Eligible for Study: 18 years to 30 years (Adult)
• Accepts Healthy Volunteers: No
• Genders Eligible for Study: All

Description

Inclusion Criteria:

• for the vegetarian sub-group : vegetarian diet pattern

Exclusion Criteria:

• high performance sport, daily alcohol intake and the in-take of dietary supplements (e.g., fish oil capsules)
• for the vegetarian sub-group, the consumption of fish and algae products (e.g. seaweeds, sushi)

Study Plan

How is the study designed?

Design Details

• Primary Purpose: Treatment
• Allocation: Non-Randomized
• Interventional Model: Single Group Assignment
• Masking: None (Open Label)

Number of Arms

2

Arms and Interventions

Participant Group / Arm	Intervention / Treatment
Experimental: Vegetarians; Dietary supplement: 10 mL linseed oil per day	Dietary supplement: Linseed oil; Dietary supplement: 10 mL linseed oil per day
Placebo Comparator: Omnivores; Dietary supplement: 10 mL linseed oil per day	Dietary supplement: Linseed oil; Dietary supplement: 10 mL linseed oil per day

What is the study measuring?

Primary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure	Time Frame
EPA concentrations in plasma lipids and red blood cell lipids	10 weeks

Secondary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure	Measure Description	Time Frame
blood lipids	total cholesterol, triacylglycerides, high density cholesterol, low density cholesterol, lipoprotein a	10 weeks

Other Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure	Measure Description	Time Frame
parameters of iron status	transferrin, ferritin, transferrin saturation, total ferritin	10 weeks

Collaborators and Investigators

• Sponsor: University of Jena

Study record dates

Study Major Dates

• Study Start: September 1, 2009
• Primary Completion (Actual): November 1, 2009
• Study Completion (Actual): December 1, 2009

Study Registration Dates

• First Submitted: February 6, 2013
• First Submitted That Met QC Criteria: February 7, 2013
• First Posted (Estimate): February 11, 2013

Study Record Updates

• Last Update Posted (Actual): October 10, 2022
• Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria: October 5, 2022
• Last Verified: February 1, 2013

More Information

Terms related to this study

• Keywords: n-3 LC-PUFA, vegetarians, fatty acids, blood lipids
• Other Study ID Numbers: H39_09