Plasma total homocysteine is influenced by prandial status in humans: The Hordaland homocysteine study

Plasma total homocysteine (tHcy) is a risk factor for cardiovascular diseas e, adverse pregnancy outcomes and impaired cognitive function. No populatio n-based studies on the possible influence of prandial status on tHcy have b een published. The aim of this study was to investigate the variation in pl asma tHcy levels in relation to time since last meal. A cross-sectional, po pulation-based study including 18,044 individuals in Western Norway was con ducted. Most subjects were in the age groups 40-42 and 65-67 y. participant s who had not eaten during the past 6 h before the blood sampling had signi ficantly higher mean tHcy levels compared with those who had eaten; 11.7 [9 5% confidence interval (CI): 11.4-12.1] vs. 11.2 (95% CI: 11.1-11.3) mu mol /L among men (P = 0.03) and 10.2 (95% CI: 9.9-10.6) vs. 9.7 (95% Cl: 9.6-9. 7) mu mol/L among women (P = 0.003). In all groups except older women, tHcy concentrations were generally higher with increasing time after a meal (P- trend <0.01 in all 3 groups). These findings suggest that fasting status an d time since last meal may influence levels of tHcy and should be considere d in studies of tHcy as a risk factor for cardiovascular and other diseases , and when comparing tHcy values among studies.