scholarly journals Potential of Chlorella as a Dietary Supplement to Promote Human Health

Nutrients ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 12 (9) ◽  
pp. 2524
Author(s):  
Tomohiro Bito ◽  
Eri Okumura ◽  
Masaki Fujishima ◽  
Fumio Watanabe

Chlorella is a green unicellular alga that is commercially produced and distributed worldwide as a dietary supplement. Chlorella products contain numerous nutrients and vitamins, including D and B12, that are absent in plant-derived food sources. Chlorella contains larger amounts of folate and iron than other plant-derived foods. Chlorella supplementation to mammals, including humans, has been reported to exhibit various pharmacological activities, including immunomodulatory, antioxidant, antidiabetic, antihypertensive, and antihyperlipidemic activities. Meta-analysis on the effects of Chlorella supplementation on cardiovascular risk factors have suggested that it improves total cholesterol levels, low-density lipoprotein cholesterol levels, systolic blood pressure, diastolic blood pressure, and fasting blood glucose levels but not triglycerides and high-density lipoprotein cholesterol levels. These beneficial effects of Chlorella might be due to synergism between multiple nutrient and antioxidant compounds. However, information regarding the bioactive compounds in Chlorella is limited.

2021 ◽  
Vol 2021 ◽  
pp. 1-14
Author(s):  
Zhao Jie ◽  
Mo Chao ◽  
Ai Jun ◽  
Shi Wei ◽  
Meng LiFeng

Background. Curcumin, a polyphenolic constituent from Curcuma longa, possesses antioxidant, hypolipidemic, and antidiabetic properties and has been reported to protect against diabetic kidney disease (DKD); however, the effect is inconsistent. Objective. This systematic review and meta-analysis aimed to investigate the effect of curcumin supplementation on renal function, lipid profile, blood pressure, and glycemic control in DKD. Methods. A systematic and comprehensive literature search of interrelated randomized controlled trials (RCTs) was conducted in PubMed, Embase, Cochrane Library, Web of Science, Scopus, and ClinicalTrials.gov from inception to July 30, 2021. Two investigators independently extracted data and assessed the risk of bias. Weighted mean differences (WMDs) with 95% confidence intervals (CIs) were calculated to describe the effect sizes using a fixed-effect model. Statistical analysis was performed using STATA 14.0 and RevMan 5.3. Results. Five RCTs involving 290 participants with DKD were included. Curcumin supplementation significantly improved the serum creatinine (WMD: −0.16 mg/dL, 95% CI: −0.3 to −0.02, P  = 0.029, I2 = 0%, moderate certainty), total cholesterol (WMD: −10.13 mg/dL, 95% CI: −17.84 to −2.14, P  = 0.01, I2 = 0%, moderate certainty), systolic blood pressure (WMD: 3.94 mmHg, 95% CI: 1.86 to 6.01, P  < 0.01, I2 = 33.5%, moderate certainty), and fasting blood glucose (WMD: −8.29 mg/dL, 95% CI: −15.19 to −1.39, P  = 0.019, I2 = 43.7%, moderate certainty) levels; however, it had no significant effects on blood urea nitrogen, proteinuria, triglyceride, low-density lipoprotein-cholesterol, high-density lipoprotein-cholesterol, and diastolic blood pressure levels. Conclusions. Curcumin may provide great potential effects against DKD. More large-scale and high-quality RCTs are required to confirm these findings.


2016 ◽  
Vol 39 (5) ◽  
pp. 161 ◽  
Author(s):  
De-Lei Kong ◽  
Zheng Qin ◽  
Wei Wang ◽  
Ying Pan ◽  
Jian Kang ◽  
...  

Purpose: Evidence suggests that obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) is related to metabolic syndrome; however, the relationship among metabolic syndrome parameters (blood pressure, fasting blood glucose (FBG), high density lipoprotein (HDL) and low density lipoprotein (LDL)) and OSA is unclear. Methods: PRISMA guidelines were followed for this study. Medline, Cochrane, EMBASE and Google Scholar databases were searched until December 23, 2015, using following terms: obstructive sleep apnea, sleep apnea, OSA and metabolic syndrome. Results: Ten studies were included in the analysis which included 2053 patients. Patients with OSA had higher systolic blood pressure (SBP) (pooled standard mean difference (SMD) = 0.56, 95% CI, 0.40 to 0.71, P


2020 ◽  
Vol 48 (8) ◽  
pp. 030006052093531
Author(s):  
Bihui Jin ◽  
Lingbo Qian ◽  
Xiaohua Fu ◽  
Jing Zhu ◽  
Jing Shu

Objective Observational studies have shown that circulating vitamin D (VitD) deficiency is associated with atherogenic lipid patterns among polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) patients. However, interventional studies have shown inconsistent results. The aim of this meta-analysis was to investigate how VitD supplementation influences lipid indices in PCOS patients. Methods The authors searched four electronic databases through August 2019 to identify randomized controlled trials (RCTs) that assessed the effect of VitD intervention on serum lipids among PCOS patients. Mean differences were generated for statistical evaluation. Results We included eight studies and performed nine comparisons across 467 participants. VitD supplementation reduced serum triglyceride levels (−11.88 mg/dL; 95% confidence interval [CI]: −17.03 to −6.73), total cholesterol (−9.09 mg/dL; 95% CI: −14.90 to −3.29), low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (−5.22 mg/dL; 95% CI: −10.32 to −0.13), and very-low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (−2.43 mg/dL; 95% CI: −3.69 to −1.17) compared with no VitD supplementation. However, high-density lipoprotein cholesterol levels showed no differences with or without VitD supplementation (−0.39 mg/dL; 95% CI: −1.39 to 0.61). Conclusions VitD supplementation improved serum lipid levels among PCOS patients, but serum high-density lipoprotein cholesterol levels were not changed. VitD intervention might benefit PCOS patients who are at high risk of an atherogenic lipid profile.


2020 ◽  
Vol 19 (1) ◽  
pp. 46-51
Author(s):  
Chuenjai Sratongfaeng ◽  
Nithipun Suksumek ◽  
Nithikoon Aksorn ◽  
Pithi Chanvorachote ◽  
Kulwara Meksawan

Astaxanthin, a potent antioxidant compound, is well recognized for its beneficial effects to protect from oxidative stress and free radicals. However, the effects of long period of use of astaxanthin on biological parameters, health indicators, and energy intake are still largely unknown. A total of 33 healthy participants aged 21–54 years with body mass index in the range of 18.50−24.90 kg/m2 were enrolled in this randomized controlled trial and were assigned into astaxanthin and placebo groups. The participants in the astaxanthin group received 4 mg of astaxanthin once daily for 12 consecutive weeks. Dietary intakes, as well as blood levels of astaxanthin and biological parameters, were investigated at baseline and week 12. The significant elevation of blood astaxanthin level in the astaxanthin group was notified at week 12. Regarding basic characteristics of blood biochemical parameters, results indicated that the fasting blood glucose, total cholesterol, high-density lipoprotein cholesterol, and low-density lipoprotein cholesterol were not significantly different between astaxanthin and placebo groups at week 12. Interestingly, the significant decrease in total energy and carbohydrate intakes of the participants in the astaxanthin group (P < 0.05) was found after 12-week supplementation, compared to the baseline. The findings support the safety of long-term supplementation and reveal potential dietary intake lowering effect of astaxanthin in healthy individuals.


Nutrients ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (6) ◽  
pp. 2003
Author(s):  
Risa Araki ◽  
Akira Yada ◽  
Hirotsugu Ueda ◽  
Kenichi Tominaga ◽  
Hiroko Isoda

The effectiveness of anthocyanins may differ according to their chemical structures; however, randomized clinical controlled trials (RCTs) or meta-analyses that examine the consequences of these structural differences have not been reported yet. In this meta-analysis, anthocyanins in test foods of 18 selected RCTs were categorized into three types: cyanidin-, delphinidin-, and malvidin-based. Delphinidin-based anthocyanins demonstrated significant effects on triglycerides (mean difference (MD): −0.24, p < 0.01), low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C) (MD: −0.28, p < 0.001), and high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-C) (MD: 0.11, p < 0.01), whereas no significant effects were observed for cyanidin- and malvidin-based anthocyanins. Although non-significant, favorable effects on total cholesterol (TC) and HDL-C were observed for cyanidin- and malvidin-based anthocyanins, respectively (both p < 0.1). The ascending order of effectiveness on TC and LDL-C was delphinidin-, cyanidin-, and malvidin-based anthocyanins, and the differences among the three groups were significant (both p < 0.05). We could not confirm the significant effects of each main anthocyanin on glucose metabolism; however, insulin resistance index changed positively and negatively with cyanidin- and delphinidin-based anthocyanins, respectively. Therefore, foods containing mainly unmethylated anthocyanins, especially with large numbers of OH groups, may improve glucose and lipid metabolism more effectively than those containing methylated anthocyanins.


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