Skip to main content

Thank you for visiting nature.com. You are using a browser version with limited support for CSS. To obtain the best experience, we recommend you use a more up to date browser (or turn off compatibility mode in Internet Explorer). In the meantime, to ensure continued support, we are displaying the site without styles and JavaScript.

  • Original Article
  • Published:

Berry meals and risk factors associated with metabolic syndrome

European Journal of Clinical Nutrition volume 64, pages 614–621 (2010)Cite this article

Subjects

Abstract

Background/Objectives:

Nonalcoholic fatty liver disease is commonly associated with obesity, insulin resistance, dyslipidemia and type 2 diabetes, and can thus be regarded as the hepatic manifestation of metabolic syndrome. In this study we compared the effects of lifestyle intervention with and without industrial berry products, on risk factors associated with metabolic syndrome on slightly overweight women.

Subjects/Methods:

Sixty-one female volunteers (average age 42.9 years) were recruited and randomized for a 20-week dietary intervention trial with two parallel treatment groups, one lifestyle intervention group with berry products equaling with an average daily dose of 163 g of northern berries (berry group, diet 1, N=31, of which 28 completed the study) and the other group with lifestyle intervention only (control group, diet 2, N=30, of which 22 completed the study).

Results:

Increased berry consumption as part of the normal daily diet was the only lifestyle difference between the two intervention groups. The major effects achieved by diet 1 were changes in the levels of alanine aminotransferase (ALAT) and adiponectin (at P-values <0.001 and 0.002, respectively). A statistically significant difference between the two intervention groups was the higher decrease in the ALAT value in the berry group (P=0.003).

Conclusions:

The 23% decrease in the ALAT value, from 20.29 to 15.66 U/l in the berry group may be regarded as nutritionally significant by enhancing the liver function. This may contribute positively to the low-grade systemic inflammation in body and decrease the risk of cardiovascular diseases.

This is a preview of subscription content, access via your institution

Access options

Buy this article

  • Purchase on SpringerLink
  • Instant access to full article PDF
Buy now

Prices may be subject to local taxes which are calculated during checkout

Figure 1
Figure 2
Figure 3

Similar content being viewed by others

References

  • Adiels M, Taskinen MR, Packard C, Caslake MJ, Soro-Paavonen A, Westerbacka J et al. (2006). Overproduction of large VLDL particles is driven by increased liver fat content in man. Diabetologia 49, 755–765.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Adiels M, Westerbacka J, Soro-Paavonen A, Häkkinen AM, Vehkavaara S, Caslake MJ et al. (2007). Acute suppression of VLDL1 secretion rate by insulin is associated with hepatic fat content and insulin resistance. Diabetologia 50, 2356–2365.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Angulo P (2002). Nonalcoholic fatty liver disease. N Engl J Med 346, 1221–1231.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Bao L, Yao X, Yau C, Tsi D, Chia CS, Nagai H et al. (2008). Protective effects of bilberry (Vaccinium myrtillus L.) extract on restraint stress-induced liver damage in mice. J Agric Food Chem 56, 7803–7807.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Bere E (2007). Wild berries: a good source of omega-3. Eur J Clin Nutr 61, 431–433.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Bugianesi E, McCullough A, Marchesini G (2005). Insulin resistance: a metabolic pathway to chronic liver disease. Hepatology 42, 987–1000.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • World Medical Association Declaration of Helsinki (2000). Ethical Principles for Medical Research Involving Human Subjects. Viewed at http://www.wma.net/en/30publications/10policies/b3/index.html, 31.3.2009.

  • Ekstedt M, Franzén L, Mathiesen U, Thorelius L, Holmqvist M, Bodemar G et al. (2006). Long-term follow-up of patients with NAFLD and elevated liver enzymes. Hepatology 44, 865–873.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Erlund I, Koli G, Alfthan J, Marniemi J, Puukka P, Mustonen P et al. (2008). Favorable effects of berry consumption on platelet function, blood pressure, and HDL cholesterol. Am J Clin Nutr 87, 323–331.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Erlund I, Marniemi J, Hakala P, Alfthan G, Meririnne E, Aro A (2003). Consumption of black currants, lingonberries and bilberries increases serum quercetin concentrations. Eur J Clin Nutr 57, 37–43.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Greco D, Kotronen A, Westerbacka J, Puig O, Arkkila P, Kiviluoto T et al. (2008). Gene expression in human NAFLD. Am J Physiol 294, G1281–G1287.

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Greenfield V, Cheung O, Sanyal AJ (2008). Recent advances in nonalcoholic fatty liver disease. Curr Opin Gastroenterol 24, 320–327.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Hanley A, Williams K, Festa A, Wagenknecht LE, D’Agostino Jr RB, Kempf J et al. (2004). Elevations in markers of liver injury and risk of type 2 diabetes: the insulin resistance atherosclerosis study. Diabetes 53, 2623–2632.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Jepson RG, Craig JC (2008). Cranberries for preventing urinary tract infections. Cochrane Database Syst Rev 1, CD001321.

    Google Scholar 

  • Johansson A, Korte H, Yang B, Stanley JC, Kallio HP (2008). Sea buckthorn berry oil inhibits platelet aggregation. J Nutr Biochem 11, 491–495.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Juutilainen P, Seppälä K, Lampinen H (2000). Evaluation of the Konelab 20i Clinical Chemistry Analyzer. Laboratory Medicine 2000, XXVII Nordic Congress of Clinical Chemistry, Bergen, Norway, 4–8 June 2000.

  • Kallio H, Yang B, Peippo P (2002). Effects of different origins and harvesting time on vitamin C, tocopherols, and tocotrienols in sea buckthorn (Hippophae rhamnoides) berries. J Agric Food Chem 50, 6136–6142.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Kalt W, Forney CF, Martin A, Prior RL (1999). Antioxidant capacity, vitamin C, phenolics, and anthocyanins after fresh storage of small fruits. J Agric Food Chem 47, 4638–4644.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Kotronen A, Westerbacka J, Bergholm R, Pietiläinen K, Yki-Järvinen H (2007). Liver fat in the metabolic syndrome. J Clin Endocr Metab 92, 3490–3497.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Kotronen A, Yki-Järvinen H (2008). Fatty liver: a novel component of the metabolic syndrome. Arteroscler Thromb Vasc Biol 28, 2276–2283.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Laatikainen T, Tapanainen H, Alfthan G, Salminen I, Sundvall J, Leiviskä J et al. (2007). Tutkimuksen toteutus ja tulokset I. Publications of the National Public Health Institute, B7.

  • Lakka H, Lakka T, Tuomilehto J, Salonen JT (2002). Abdominal obesity is associated with increased risk of acute coronary events in men. Eur Heart J 23, 706–713.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Larmo P, Alin J, Salminen E, Kallio H, Tahvonen R (2008). Effects of sea buckthorn berries on infections and inflammation: a double-blind, randomized, placebo-controlled trial. Eur J Clin Nutr 62, 1123–1130.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Määttä-Riihinen K, Kamal-Eldin A, Mattila P, González-Paramás AM, Törrönen AR (2004). Distribution and contents of phenolic compounds in eighteen Scandinavian berry species. J Agric Food Chem 52, 4477–4486.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Marchesini G, Brizi M, Bianchi G, Tomassetti S, Bugianesi E, Lenzi M et al. (2001). Nonalcoholic fatty liver disease: a feature of the metabolic syndrome. Diabetes 50, 1844–1850.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Marniemi J, Hakala P, Mäki J, Ahotupa M (2000). Partial resistance of low density lipoprotein to oxidation in vivo after increased intake of berries. Nutr Metab Cardiovasc Dis 10, 331–337.

    CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Mokdad A, Ford E, Bowman B, Dietz WH, Vinicor F, Bales VS et al. (2001). Prevalence of obesity, diabetes, and obesity-related health risk factors. JAMA 289, 76–79.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Nakanishi N, Noriyuki MD, Suzuki K, Tatara K (2004). Serum gamma-glutamyltransferase and risk of metabolic syndrome and type 2 diabetes in middle-aged Japanese men. Diabetes Care 27, 1427–1432.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Ohlson O, Larsson B, Björntorp P, Eriksson H, Svärdsudd K, Welin L et al. (1988). Risk factors for type 2 (non-insulin-dependent) diabetes mellitus. Thirteen and one-half years of follow-up of the participants in a study of Swedish men born in 1913. Diabetologia 31, 798–805.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Overbergh L, Decallonne B, Valcox D, Verstuyf A, Depovere J, Laureys J et al. (2000). Identification and immune regulation of 25-hydroxyvitamin D-1-alpha-hydroxylase in murine macrophages. Clin Exp Immunol 120, 139–146.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Pittas A, Harris S, Stark B, Dawson-Hughes B (2007). The effects of calcium and vitamin D supplementation on blood glucose and markers and inflammation in nondiabetic adults. Diabetes Care 30, 980–986.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Ryysy L, Häkkinen AM, Goto T, Vehkavaara S, Westerbacka J, Halavaara J et al. (2000). Hepatic fat content and insulin action on free fatty acids and glucose metabolism rather than insulin absorption are associated with insulin requirements during insulin therapy in type 2 diabetic patients. Diabetes 49, 749–758.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Sattar N, Scherbakova O, Ford I, O’Reilly DS, Stanley A, Forrest E et al. (2004). Elevated alanine aminotransferase predicts new-onset type 2 diabetes independently of classical risk factors, metabolic syndrome, and C-reactive protein in the west of Scotland Coronary Prevention Study. Diabetes 53, 2855–2860.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Seppälä-Lindroos A, Vehkavaara S, Häkkinen AM, Goto T, Westerbacka J, Sovijärvi A et al. (2002). Fat accumulation in the liver is associated with defects in insulin suppression of glucose production and serum free fatty acids independent of obesity in normal men. J Clin Endocr Metab 87, 3023–3028.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Tahvonen R, Schwab U, Linderborg K, Mykkänen HM, Kallio HP et al. (2005). Black currant seed oil and fish oil supplements differ in their effects on fatty acid profiles of plasma lipids, and concentrations of serum total and lipoprotein lipids, plasma glucose and insulin. J Nutr Biochem 16, 353–359.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Targher G, Berolini L, Padovani R, Rodella S, Tessari R, Zenari L et al. (2007). Prevalence of nonalcoholic fatty liver disease and its association with cardiovascular disease among type 2 diabetic patients. Diabetes Care 30, 1212–1218.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Tiikkainen M, Bergholm R, Vehkavaara S (2003). Effects of identical weight loss on body composition and features of insulin resistance in obese women with high and low liver fat content. Diabetes 52, 701–707.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Valtueña S, Pellegrini N, Franzini L, Bianchi MA, Ardigò D, Del Rio D et al. (2008). Food selection based on total antioxidant capacity can modify antioxidant intake, systemic inflammation, and liver function without altering markers of oxidative stress. Am J Clin Nutr 87, 1290–1297.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Venojärvi M, Aunola S, Puhke R, Marniemi J, Hämäläinen H, Halonen JP et al. (2008). Exercise training with dietary counselling increases mitochondrial chaperone expression in middle-aged subjects with impaired glucose tolerance. BMC Endocr Disord 8, 3–14.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Vozarova B, Stefan N, Lindsay R, Saremi A, Pratley RE, Bogardus C et al. (2002). High alanine aminotransferase is associated with decreased hepatic insulin sensitivity and predicts the development of type 2 diabetes. Diabetes 51, 1889–1895.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

Download references

Acknowledgements

We thank all the volunteers involved in the study. We are grateful for Finnish Funding Agency for Technology and Innovation as well as our industrial partners for financial support.

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Biochemistry and Food Chemistry, University of Turku, Turku, Finland

    H-M Lehtonen, J-P Suomela, J Vaarno & H Kallio

  2. MTT Agrifood Research Finland, Jokioinen, Finland

    R Tahvonen

  3. Medical Laboratory Technology, Turku University of Applied Sciences, Turku, Finland

    M Venojärvi

  4. Department of Medicine, Turku University Hospital, University of Turku, Turku, Finland

    J Viikari

Authors
  1. H-M Lehtonen
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. J-P Suomela
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  3. R Tahvonen
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  4. J Vaarno
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  5. M Venojärvi
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  6. J Viikari
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  7. H Kallio
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to H Kallio.

Ethics declarations

Competing interests

The authors declare no conflict of interest.

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Cite this article

Lehtonen, HM., Suomela, JP., Tahvonen, R. et al. Berry meals and risk factors associated with metabolic syndrome. Eur J Clin Nutr 64, 614–621 (2010). https://doi.org/10.1038/ejcn.2010.27

Download citation

  • Received:

  • Revised:

  • Accepted:

  • Published:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/ejcn.2010.27

Keywords

This article is cited by

Search

Advanced search

Quick links