Very low intakes of N-3 fatty acids incorporated into bovine milk reduce plasma triacylglycerol and increase HDL-cholesterol concentrations in healthy subjects

Eight normolipidaemic volunteers, habitual partial skim milk drinkers and non-eaters of fish during the study, were given 500 mi day(-1) of partial skim milk for 1 month; they were then switched to 500 mi day-l of a novel commercially available milk preparation, supplying 400 mg of n-3 fatty acids-of which 300 mg were EPA + DHA-and 15 mg vitamin E, for 6 weeks. No changes in plasma lipid parameters were observed after the first run-in month; at 3 and 6 weeks on the n3-rich milk, marked increments of plasma EPA (44 and 31%, respectively) and DHA (13 and 31%, respectively) were observed. Triacylglycerol (TG) concentrations decreased by 19% and high-density lipoprotein (HDL) concentrations increased by 19% at 6 weeks; plasma vitamin E rose by 21% while the susceptibility of plasma to oxidation was unaffected. Correlations were found between plasma EPA or DHA and TG, cholesterol, and HDL. In conclusion, the intake of a milk preparation providing low amounts of EPA + DHA to healthy individuals led to marked increases of n-3 fatty acids and vitamin E in plasma and in associated favourable changes in HDL and TG. (C) 2000 Academic Press.