Cardiometabolic risk, biomarkers of low-grade subclinical inflammation and flavonoid intake: A cross-sectional study in Argentina

Background

Flavonoids, the most abundant polyphenols present in the diet, may help to reduce the risk of cardiometabolic disease. Hence, the aim of this study was to know the potential associations between flavonoid source food intake, markers of low-grade inflammation and cardiometabolic risk status.

Methods

194 adult subjects attending at the Cardiology Division, Hospital Nacional de Clínicas, Córdoba, Argentina participated in the study. A validated food-frequency questionnaire was applied to establish the flavonoid source food intake. Clinical-pathological and anthropometric variables [height, weight, and waist circumference, and serum concentrations of high-sensitive C-reactive protein (hs-CRP) and cytokines (INF-γ, TNFα, IL-6, IL-8, IL-10, IL-18, IL-23) were measured. A cardiometabolic risk clustering score was constructed and correlation’s coefficients and multiple linear regression models were used to assess the relation between flavonoid source foods consumption of and markers of low-grade inflammation.

Results

40.4% of the subjects were obese and 60.3% showed a very high risk of developing cardiovascular diseases according to the WC classification. 43.3% had a high risk of cardiometabolic dysregulation and the hs-CRP levels indicated a high risk of developing cardiovascular disease in the future both in men and women. The predominant intake of flavonoids was from source food of flavanones, flavones and flavonols. Negative associations between isoflavone source food intake and TNFα, IL-6 and IL-8 concentrations (P ≤ 0.05) were observed.

Conclusions

The results of the present study provide evidence of the inverse association between isoflavone source foods intake and inflammation. Further studies are needed to confirm retrieved association.