Dietary plant sterols alter the serum plant sterol concentration but not the cholesterol precursor sterol concentrations in young children (The STRIPstudy)

Plant sterol supplementation reduces serum cholesterol concentration but ma y increase serum plant sterol concentrations, especially in children. We de termined whether natural dietary plant sterols derived mainly from vegetabl e oil or margarine in early childhood affect serum concentrations of plant sterols (campesterol and sitosterol) and cholesterol precursor sterols (Del ta -8 cholestenol, desmosterol, and lathosterol), reflecting endogenous cho lesterol synthesis. We measured the serum sterol concentrations using gas l iquid chromatography in 20 healthy 13-mo-old intervention children in a ran domized, prospective study designed to decrease exposure of the children to known environmental atherosclerosis risk factors and in 20 control childre n. The diet of the intervention children was rich in plant sterols due to r eplacement of milk fat with vegetable fat, whereas the diet of the control children contained only small amounts of plant sterols, The intervention ch ildren consumed twice as much plant sterols as the control children (P < 0. 001). Their serum concentrations of campesterol and sitosterol were 75% and 44% higher, respectively, than those in the control children (P < 0.001 fo r both), but serum cholesterol precursor sterol concentrations did not diff er between the two groups. We conclude that doubling dietary plant sterol i ntake almost doubles serum plant sterol concentrations in 13-mo-old childre n, but has no effect on endogenous cholesterol synthesis. Relative intestin al absorption of natural plant sterols from the diet in early childhood is similar to that in adults.