Short-Term Hemodynamic Effects of Modern Wheat Products Substitution in Diet with Ancient Wheat Products: A Cross-Over, Randomized Clinical Trial

Abstract

Recent evidence suggests that bioactive compounds isolated from cereals and legumes could exert some metabolic and vascular effects in humans. Due to the recent identification of a non-specific lipid transfer protein (nsLTP2) in wheat with antioxidant and anti-inflammatory activity, we aimed to comparatively test the hemodynamic and metabolic effects of ancient wheat foodstuffs (made of organic KAMUT® khorasan wheat) or modern wheat ones, made of a mixture of organic modern commercial durum (T. durum) varieties and soft wheat (T. aestivum), with different nsLTP2 content. Thus, we carried out a randomized, cross-over clinical trial on 63 non-diabetic healthy volunteers (aged 40–70 years) with systolic blood pressure (SBP) 130–139 mmHg and/or diastolic blood pressure (DBP) 85–90 mmHg (pre-hypertensive/borderline high pressure subjects). Each treatment period lasted four weeks. After ancient wheat foodstuffs intake, subjects experienced a significant improvement in triglycerides (−9.8% vs. baseline and −14.5% versus modern wheat), fasting plasma glucose (−4.3% versus baseline and −31.6% versus modern wheat), diurnal SBP (−3.1% vs. baseline and –30.2% vs. modern wheat) and nocturnal SBP (−3.2% vs. baseline and −36.8% vs. modern wheat), and pulse volume change (+4.2% vs. baseline and +2.3% vs. modern wheat) (p < 0.05 vs. baseline and versus modern wheat foodstuffs intake). Therefore, our findings show that substituting modern wheat products in diet with ancient wheat ones, might exert a mild improvement in 24-h SBP and endothelial reactivity in pre-hypertensive healthy subjects.

Differential Physiological Responses Elicited by Ancient and Heritage Wheat Cultivars Compared to Modern Ones

“…Eight weeks of diet based on this heritage cultivar resulted in a significant reduction in total cholesterol, LDL, and glucose [24] in the blood. A decrease in triglycerides and fasting plasma glucose was observed in a randomized, crossover clinical trial on 63 healthy volunteers [81]. Furthermore, a randomized crossover study conducted on 22 patients suffering from acute coronary syndrome confirmed the results, showing again a decrease in blood levels of total cholesterol, LDL-C, fasting glucose, and insulin that were not observed after the consumption of modern cultivars [25].…”

Impact of wheat aleurone on biomarkers of cardiovascular disease, gut microbiota and metabolites in adults with high body mass index: a double-blind, placebo-controlled, randomized clinical trial

“…Although increased intake of whole grain cereals is seen as protective against CVD [ 1 , 2 ], not all studies consistently show improvement in CVD-related parameters. For example, Cicero et al [ 39 ] using a crossover design and 4 week intervention periods, showed that foodstuffs containing ancient wheat (with high levels of non-specific lipid transfer protein 2 as proposed bioactive) could lower blood pressure, triglycerides and fasting blood levels in pre-hypertensive/borderline high pressure subjects ( n = 63) compared to foodstuffs containing modern wheat varieties low in nsLTP2. Conversely, Vetrani et al [ 40 ] found no effect of whole grain cereal foodstuffs compared to refined grain foodstuffs on glucose homeostasis or plasma lipid parameters in overweight/obese subjects with the metabolic syndrome ( n = 26) after a 12 week intervention.…”

Three‐arm, placebo‐controlled, randomized clinical trial evaluating the metabolic effect of a combined nutraceutical containing a bergamot standardized flavonoid extract in dyslipidemic overweight subjects

“…Nutrient intake was estimated from the 4‐day records before the randomization and at the end of the intervention period. The nutritional evaluation was performed by an expert nutritionist biologist with Software MètaDieta® (Me.Te.Da s.r.l., San Benedetto del Tronto, Italy) using Italian Food Composition databases (Cicero et al, ).…”