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Benefits of Almond Consumption in Modulation of Intestinal Microbiome and Novel Disease Risk Biomarkers

Not Applicable
Terminated
Conditions
Microbiota
Interventions
Other: Almonds
Other: Omelette
Registration Number
NCT03327441
Lead Sponsor
University of Manitoba
Brief Summary

The overall goal is to assess the health benefits of almond consumption on gut microbiome patterns and their association with circulating disease risk biomarkers, as well as the processes that control those pathways. Health benefits will be assessed relative to a omelette control.

Detailed Description

Men and women with elevated waist circumference aged between 18-75 yrs will be recruited from the Winnipeg (Manitoba, Canada) area to participate in a two arm crossover, randomized study; each treatment period will be 4 weeks in length, with a 4 week washout period separating each treatment. Participants will be randomized to consume either i) almonds, or ii) omelettes at 15% of energy. Each of the treatment products will contain equal levels of calories.

Recruitment & Eligibility

Status
TERMINATED
Sex
All
Target Recruitment
38
Inclusion Criteria
  • Able to give written informed consent
  • Men and women 18-75 yr
  • Elevated waist circumferences (women greater than or equal to 80 cm, men greater than or equal to 94 cm)
  • LDL-C greater than or equal to 2.8 mmol/L, or less than or equal to 4.9 mmol/L
  • Non-smokers
  • Possess a telephone or email address to enable regular contact
  • Able to read, write and speak English
Exclusion Criteria
  • Pregnant female, or planning to become pregnant during the study period
  • Weight gain or loss of at least 10lbs in previous three months
  • Allergic to almonds, eggs, milk
  • Exercising > 15 miles/wk or 4,000 kcal/wk
  • Those currently taking (or have taken within the past 3 months) lipid-lowering medications (i.e., statins)
  • Those currently taking (or have taken within the last 3 months) lipid-lowering supplements (i.e., omega-3 supplements, plant sterols/stanol foods and/or supplements, fibre, etc.)
  • Those currently taking (or have taken within the last 3 months) probiotic supplements and foods containing added probiotics (i.e., kefir, Activia, Kashi: Vive Probiotic Digestive Wellness Cereal)
  • Previous history of diabetes, hypertension, gastrointestinal disease, liver or lung disease or cancer, hyperthyroidism or hypothyroidism, or lung disease.
  • Alcohol use of >2 drinks/day

Study & Design

Study Type
INTERVENTIONAL
Study Design
CROSSOVER
Arm && Interventions
GroupInterventionDescription
AlmondsAlmonds-
OmeletteOmelette-
Primary Outcome Measures
NameTimeMethod
Gastrointestinal microbiome4 weeks

Bacterial community alpha-diversity measured using richness and diversity indices including Chao1, Shannon, Inverse Simpson.

Bacterial community beta-diversity measured using weighted and unweighted UniFrac distances.

The most abundant Operational Taxonomic Units (OTUs) within the bacterial community identified based on the relative abundances of the OTUs within the community.

Bacterial community composition at the phylum and genus levels described based on the relative abundances of each taxa within the community.

Bacterial community functional capacity measured based on the relative abundances of collected predicted functions of the community members.

Ecological relationships between members of bacterial community assessed using correlation network modelling to identify keystone and foundation members of the bacterial community that have the highest number of positive (supportive) or negative (suppressive) connections (\>15) with other members of community.

Secondary Outcome Measures
NameTimeMethod
Interferon gamma4 weeks
Blood high-density lipoprotein cholesterol4 weeks
Tumor necrosis factor alpha4 weeks
C-reactive protein4 weeks
Vascular cell adhesion molecule 14 weeks
7α-hydroxy-4-cholesten-3-one4 weeks
Blood low-density lipoprotein cholesterol4 weeks
Interleukin 1 beta4 weeks
Serum amyloid A4 weeks
Intercellular adhesion molecule 14 weeks
Cholesterol synthesis rate4 weeks
Cholesterol absorption rate4 weeks
Blood pressure4 weeks
Interleukin 64 weeks
Fecal short chain fatty acids4 weeks
Waist circumference4 weeks
Body mass index4 weeks

Weight and height will be combined to report BMI in kg/m\^2

Hip circumference4 weeks
Blood total cholesterol4 weeks
Fatty acid synthesis rate4 weeks
Blood triglycerides4 weeks

Trial Locations

Locations (1)

Richardson Centre for Functional Foods and Nutraceuticals, University of Manitoba

🇨🇦

Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada

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