Cooling inflammation for healthier arteries

The Agricultural Research Service (ARS)-funded scientists have reported new reasons for choosing “heart-healthy” oats at the grocery store, reports ARS writer Rosalie Marion Bliss. Nutritionist Mohsen Meydani, director of the Vascular Biology Laboratory at the Jean Mayer USDA Human Nutrition Research Center on Aging at Tufts University in Boston, Mass., led the research on oat compounds called avenanthramides. Meydani has previously shown that phenolic antioxidants in oats obstruct the ability of blood cells to stick to artery walls.

The chronic inflammation inside the arterial wall is part of the process that eventually leads to a disorder known as atherosclerosis. Meydani and his colleagues reported findings that suggest the avenanthramides of oats decrease the expression of inflammatory molecules. The study showed that the forms of avenanthramides possess potential anti-inflammatory properties through inhibiting factors that are linked with activating proinflammatory cytokines.

Cytokines are small proteins released by cells while seeking to protect and repair tissue. Some trigger inflammation, for example, while responding to infection. Inhibiting inflammation through diet, drugs or key nutrients is considered to be beneficial in preventing atherosclerosis. Details of this study can be found in the scientific journal Free Radical Biology & Medicine.

The study also provides additional indications of the potential health benefit of oat consumption in the prevention of coronary heart disease beyond its known effect through lowering blood cholesterol.