Flavonoids rich foods reduce heart risk
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A study that appears in the March 2007 issue of American Journal of Clinical Nutrition suggests that eating food high in flavonoids, such as chocolate, may help reduce the risk of cardiovascular disease.
Mink P J and colleagues from Exponent, Inc in Washington DC analyzed data on intake of flavonoids and CVD, coronary heart disease, stroke, and total mortality from 34,489 post-menopausal women who participated in the Iowa Women's Health Study to examine if there was any association between intake of dietary flavonoids and cardiovascular disease risk.
The participants were free of cardiovascular disease when entering the study and, during the 16 years of follow-up, dietary intake of flavonoids and cardiovascular events including CVD, coronary heart disease, stroke and deaths were recorded.
Women who had higher intakes of anthocyanidins were less likely to have CHD, CVD and total mortality than those who had no intake. Those with an intake of flavanones in the highest quintile were 12 percent less likely to die during the study follow-up compared to those whose intake was in the lowest quintile.
However, the researchers found no association between flavonoid intake and stroke mortality.
Flavonoid rich foods that were found associated with reduced risk of death included bran (stroke and CVD), apples or pears, or both and red wine (CHD and CVD), grapefruit (CHD), strawberries (CVD), and chocolate (CVD), according to the researchers.
By David Liu and editing by Denise Reynolds
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