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Effects of dietary whole grain, fruit, and vegetables on weight and inflammatory biomarkers in overweight and obese women

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Eating and Weight Disorders - Studies on Anorexia, Bulimia and Obesity Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

Purpose

The separate effects of whole grain (WG) and fruit and vegetable (F&V) diets on inflammatory biomarkers have not been assessed. Therefore, we evaluated these two high-fiber diets in relation to inflammation indices in obese and overweight women.

Study design

Parallel randomized clinical trial.

Methods

In the present study, 75 women were recruited and randomly assigned to three diet groups: a whole grain diet (WG-D) group, F&V group, and a combined whole grain and F&V diet group (WGFV-D) for 10 weeks. As a “feeding trial” all participants were asked to visit the clinic daily and eat prescribed foods in the presence of a nutritionist. Anthropometric indices and biochemical biomarkers were measured at baseline and after 10 weeks of the trial.

Results

Each of the three diet groups showed significant changes in serum biomarkers (CRP, TNF-α, IL-6, D-dimer, and serum fibrinogen) after following the diet for 10 weeks (P = 0.01). In adjusted models, significant changes were observed for CRP, TNF-α, IL-6, D-dimer, and serum fibrinogen (P = 0.01). In a model adjusted for malondialdehyde (MDA) level, a trend toward significance was observed (P = 0.05). Consumption of all three different diets for 10 weeks showed statistically significant change for all biomarkers (P < 0.05) the most notable changes in inflammatory indices were observed among participants following the WG diet.

Conclusions

Study results indicate that consumption of high-fiber diets, especially the WG diet, can help lower inflammatory levels and prevent subsequent adverse health consequences.

Level of Evidence

Level I, randomized controlled trial.

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Acknowledgements

The authors are grateful to all individuals who participated in this study.

Funding

This study was supported by Isfahan University of Medical Sciences.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Cellular and Molecular Nutrition, School of Nutritional Sciences and Dietetics, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran

    Niloufar Arabzadegan

  2. Department of Community Nutrition, School of Nutritional Sciences and Dietetics, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran

    Elnaz Daneshzad, Somayeh Fatahi & Leila Azadbakht

  3. Department of Community Nutrition, School of Nutrition and Food Science, Isfahan University of Medical Sciences, Isfahan, Iran

    Seyedeh Parisa Moosavian & Leila Azadbakht

  4. Department of International Health, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, Baltimore, MD, USA

    Pamela J. Surkan

  5. Diabetes Research Center, Endocrinology and Metabolism Clinical Sciences Institute, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran

    Leila Azadbakht

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Contributions

NA and SF prepared the manuscript. ED and PM conducted the study. ED and LA checked and edited the article. LA supervised all aspects of the study.

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Leila Azadbakht.

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The authors report no conflict of interest.

Ethical approval

All procedures performed in this study were in accordance with the ethical standards of Isfahan University of Medical Sciences.

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Informed consent was obtained from all study participants.

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Arabzadegan, N., Daneshzad, E., Fatahi, S. et al. Effects of dietary whole grain, fruit, and vegetables on weight and inflammatory biomarkers in overweight and obese women. Eat Weight Disord 25, 1243–1251 (2020). https://doi.org/10.1007/s40519-019-00757-x

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s40519-019-00757-x

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