Accumulation of phytosterols in food. Evaluation of the adverse effects following the intake of high dose of phytosterols
Year: 2005
Type: article
Abstract: Phytosterol-enriched foods (sterol or stanol esters) decrease plasma LDL\nin healthy and hypercholesterolaemic individuals; a daily intake of 1-3\ng plant sterols lowers LDL levels by about 5-15%. Higher intake of\nphytosterols is not more effective.Phytosterols are poorly absorbed and\nretain no systemic toxicological effects i.e. no endocrine, teratogenic,\nmutagenic or carcinogenic effects. However, plant sterols and stanols\ninterfere with the absorption of beta-carotenoids, but virtualy not the\nplasma levels of other fat-soluble vitamins, such as vitamin A, D, E and\ntocopherols. One-year consumption of margarine enriched with phytosterol\n(3 g per day) decreased plasma beta-carotenoid by 33%. The consequences\nof such a persistent decrease of blood concentrations of beta-carotene on\nhuman health are largely unknown. No serious concern can be deduced\nregarding the role of beta-carotene as a vitamin A precursor, except in\ncases where the vitamin A requirement is larger than normal, like in\npregnancy, lactation or infancy. The available data on adverse effects\ndo not provide a basis for setting an upper level of total daily intake\nof phytosterols but considering the observed maximal effective dose for\ncholesterol lowering is 2-3 g/day and the lack of long-term studies, it\nis prudent to avoid plant sterol intakes exceeding this dose. Since a\nnumber of foods appear as potential candidates to be enriched with plant\nsterols, additional management measures may be needed to avoid excessive\nintakes.
Language: English
Subfield: Biochemistry
Domain: Life Sciences
Open Access status: green
OpenAlex ID: W2127938025