Milk Fat Globule Membrane in a Novel High-Fat Spread Does Not Acutely Affect Postprandial Lipidemia in Healthy Individuals-A Randomized, Double-Blind Crossover Trial.

BACKGROUND

Observational studies report neutral or inverse associations between some milk fat-containing dairy foods and cardiometabolic disease risk. Milk fat globule membrane (MFGM), a complex trilayered membrane surrounding milk fat droplets, has been proposed as a mechanistic contributor to these effects, but its specific role, independent of other components of the dairy matrix, remains unclear.

OBJECTIVES

We investigated whether MFGM content and structure affect postprandial lipidemia in healthy adults.

METHODS

In a randomized, double-blind, controlled, crossover study, 12 healthy adults completed 3 study visits conducted inside whole-room indirect calorimeters separated by a ≥1-wk washout. To isolate the effects of MFGM presence and structural integrity, we developed 3 isocaloric high-fat spreads matched for protein, fat, and carbohydrate content and differing only in their MFGM characteristics: intact (iMFGM), disrupted (dMFGM), or absent (non-MFGM). At each study visit, participants consumed 2 high-fat sandwich meals, each composed of 60 g (including 40 g milk fat) high-fat dairy spread containing either iMFGM, dMFGM, or no MFGM; the MFGM-containing meals provided ∼120 mg phospholipids per meal. The primary outcome was postprandial plasma triglyceride incremental area under the curve (iAUC). Secondary outcomes included gastric emptying assessed by the acetaminophen test, energy expenditure, and respiratory exchange ratio measured continuously by whole-room indirect calorimetry, appetite ratings, and ad libitum energy intake.

RESULTS

Postprandial iAUC for triglycerides were not different between test meals {iMFGM: 179.5 mmol/L/min [95% confidence interval (CI): 76.9, 282.2 mmol/L/min]; dMFGM: 155.0 mmol/L/min (95% CI: 83.5, 226.5 mmol/L/min); no MFGM: 133.4 mmol/L/min (95% CI: 75.2, 191.6 mmol/L/min); P = 0.9}. Glucose-dependent insulinotropic polypeptide concentration increased more for MFGM than for dMFGM and no MFGM (P = 0.02). Free fatty acid concentrations were higher for MFGM than for dMFGM (P = 0.01). No differences in other secondary outcomes were observed.

CONCLUSIONS

The presence or structural integrity of MFGM in a novel high-fat spread incorporated into 2 standardized sandwich meals does not acutely influence postprandial lipidemia in healthy individuals. This study was registered at clinicaltrails.gov as NCT06340412.