Adults with prediabetes who ate a medium Hass avocado and a cup of fresh mango daily for eight weeks showed improved blood vessel function, according to a study published in the Journal of the American Heart Association. The changes occurred without significant increases in body weight or total calorie intake.
Researchers at the Illinois Institute of Technology studied 82 adults aged 25 to 60 with prediabetes and a BMI of 25 to 35. One group followed a calorie-controlled diet that included the fruits; a comparison group ate carbohydrate-based foods with equivalent calories instead.
Flow-mediated dilation, a measure of how well blood vessels expand as blood flows through them, rose to 6.7% in the avocado-and-mango group. It fell to 4.6% in the comparison group. The researchers also reported a difference in central blood pressure among men: it increased by an average of 5 mmHg in the comparison group and decreased by about 1.9 mmHg in men eating the fruits.
The fruit group consumed more fiber, vitamin C and monounsaturated fat. Researchers also observed changes in some measures of kidney function. However, cholesterol, blood sugar and inflammation markers did not improve significantly compared with the control group.
The authors cautioned that the trial lasted only eight weeks and measured risk indicators, not outcomes such as heart attacks or strokes. Its participants were adults with prediabetes and overweight or obesity, so the results may not apply to other populations. Further research is needed to determine whether the observed changes last and affect long-term cardiovascular risk.
Sources: ScienceDaily.