Effect of tomato consumption on high-density lipoprotein cholesterol level: a randomized, single-blinded, controlled clinical trial

Abstract

Daniel Cuevas-Ramos,1 Paloma Almeda-Valdés,1 Emma Chávez-Manzanera,1 Clara Elena Meza-Arana,2 Griselda Brito-Córdova,1 Roopa Mehta,1 Oscar Pérez-Méndez,3 Francisco J Gómez-Pérez1 1Department of Endocrinology and Metabolism, Instituto Nacional de Ciencias Médicas y Nutrición Salvador Zubirán, Mexico City, Mexico; 2Department of Internal Medicine, Instituto Nacional de Ciencias Médicas y Nutrición Salvador Zubirán, Mexico City, Mexico; 3Department of Molecular Biology, Instituto Nacional de Cardiología Ignacio Chávez, Mexico City, Mexico Introduction: Epidemiologic evidence suggests that tomato-based products could reduce the risk of cardiovascular diseases. One of the main cardiovascular risk factors is low levels of high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-C). This study aimed to prospectively evaluate the effect of tomato consumption on HDL-C levels. Subject and methods: We conducted a randomized, single-blinded, controlled clinical trial. We screened 432 subjects with a complete lipid profile. Those individuals with low HDL-C (men 40 mg/dL. A linear regression model that adjusted for those parameters that impact HDL-C levels (age, gender, waist-to-hip ratio, body mass index, fasting triglyceride concentration, simple sugars, alcohol, physical activity, and omega-3 consumption) showed an independent association between tomato consumption and the increase in HDL-C (r2 = 0.69; P > 0.0001). Conclusion: Raw tomato consumption produced a favorable effect on HDL-C levels in overweight women. Keywords: lycopene, hypoalphalipoproteinemia, dyslipidemia, overweight, cardiovascular diseases