Vegetable oil based versus wood based stanol ester mixtures: effects on serum lipids and hemostatic factors in non-hypercholesterolemic subjects

A pine wood based stanol ester mixture-composed of sitostanol (92%) and cam pestanol (8%) effectively lowers cholesterol absorption and consequently LD L-cholesterol concentrations. It has been postulated that the less absorbab le plant sterols reduce cholesterol absorption more effectively. As sitosta nol is absorbed less than campestanol, we decided to examine if a vegetable oil based stanol ester mixture with 68% sitostanol and 32% campestanol is less effective than the wood based stanol ester mixture. For this, 112 non- hypercholesterolemic men and women consumed for 4 weeks a rapeseed oil (LEA R) based margarine and shortening. For the next 8 weeks, 42 subjects contin ued with these products, while the other subjects received products with a vegetable oil (n = 36) or a pine wood based stanol ester mixture (n = 34). Consumption of 3.8 g vegetable oil based stanols (2.6 g sitostanol plus 1.2 g campestanol) lowered LDL cholesterol 14.6 +/- 8.0% (- 0.37 mmol/l; vs. t he control group; P < 0.001; 95% CI for the difference, - 0.22 to - 0.51 mm ol/l). Four grams pine wood based stanols (3.7 g sitostanol plus 0.3 g camp estanol) showed a comparable decrease of 12.8 +/- 11.2% (- 0.34 mmol/l; P < 0.001; 95% CI - 0.18 to - 0.51 mmol/l). Decreases in LDL cholesterol were not different between the two experimental groups (P = 0.793), while apoE g enotype did not have a major impact on this hypocholesterolemic response. S erum HDL cholesterol and triacylglycerol concentrations were not changed. T he decreases in apo B in both experimental groups differed significantly (P < 0.001) from changes in the control group. Coagulation and fibrinolytic p arameters were not affected. We therefore conclude that vegetable oil and w ood based stanol ester mixtures, with a different sitostanol/campestanol ra tio, have similar LDL cholesterol lowering effects in a non-hypercholestero lemic population. (C) 2000 Elsevier Science Ireland Ltd. All rights reserve d.