Dose-Response Effects of Cottonseed Oil on Blood Lipid Responses in Adults at Risk of Cardiovascular Disease: A Randomized Controlled Trial.

BACKGROUND

Cottonseed oil (CSO) has displayed beneficial effects regarding blood lipids, albeit in relatively high doses.

OBJECTIVES

The aim was to examine the effects of 3 doses of CSO compared with a control (CON) diet on blood lipids in adults at risk of cardiovascular disease (CVD).

METHODS

Ninety-one adults with obesity and/or hypercholesterolemia completed this randomized, parallel clinical trial with a 4-wk partial outpatient feeding intervention. Participants were randomly assigned into 1 of 4 groups: intervention group received 10% estimated energy needs (EEN) from cottonseed oil (LOW) (n = 23), intervention group received 20% EEN from cottonseed oil (MID) (n = 23), or intervention group received 30% EEN from cottonseed oil (HIGH) (n = 22) providing 10%, 20%, or 30% of EEN from CSO, respectively, or control (CON) (n = 23), receiving 10% of EEN from a combination of oils. Fasting blood lipids were obtained at preintervention and postintervention visits, followed by a high-fat meal challenge (35% EEN) with 5-h postprandial blood draws to evaluate lipid metabolism.

RESULTS

Compared with the control diet, total cholesterol decreased in LOW, MID, and HIGH, respectively (-10.2 mg/dL; -12.5 mg/dL; -13.9 mg/dL, respectively; P < 0.05 for all). Similarly, non-high-density lipoprotein cholesterol decreased in LOW, MID, and HIGH (-10.2 mg/dL; -15.8 mg/dL; -16.5, respectively; P < 0.05 for all) compared with CON. Low-density lipoprotein cholesterol reduced in MID and HIGH (-11.7 mg/dL and -12.9 mg/dL, respectively; P < 0.05 for both) with a trend for reduction in LOW (-6.8 mg/dL; P = 0.08) compared with no change in CON. Postprandial triglycerides were reduced in HIGH (-14.7 mg/dL, P = 0.02) compared with LOW, MID, and CON.

CONCLUSIONS

Enriching diets with 10%, 20%, and 30% CSO improved fasting blood lipids in CVD at-risk adults, with the best results in the 20% and 30% doses. This trial was registered at clinicaltrials.gov as NCT05686954.