Short-term supplementation with fermented red clover extract reduces vascular inflammation in early post-menopausal women

Kate Aiko Wickham, Line Boel Nørregaard, Mikkel Oxfeldt, Stephen S Cheung, Lasse Gliemann, Mette Hansen, Ylva Hellsten*

*Corresponding author for this work

Research output: Contribution to journalJournal articleResearchpeer-review

4 Citations (Scopus)
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Abstract

The decline in estrogen at menopause poses a critical challenge to cardiovascular and metabolic health. Recently, a growing interest in the role of phytoestrogens, with a particular focus on isoflavones, has emerged as they can bind to estrogen receptors and may mimic the roles of endogenous estrogen. Fermented red clover extract (RC) contains isoflavones with superior bioavailability compared to non-fermented isoflavones, however little is known regarding the impact of isoflavones on cardiovascular and metabolic health. We assessed markers of vascular health in plasma and skeletal muscle samples obtained from healthy but sedentary early post-menopausal women (n = 10; 54 ± 4 years) following 2 weeks of twice daily treatment with placebo (PLA) or RC (60 mg isoflavones per day). The two interventions were administered using a randomized, double-blind, crossover design with a two-week washout period. Plasma samples were utilized for assessment of markers of vascular inflammation. There was a statistically significant reduction (~5.4%) in vascular cell adhesion molecule 1 (VCAM-1) following 2 weeks of RC supplementation compared to PLA (p = 0.03). In contrast, there was no effect of RC supplementation compared to PLA on skeletal muscle estrogen receptor content and enzymes related to vascular function, and angiogenesis. Supplementation with RC reduces vascular inflammation in early post-menopausal women and future studies should address the long-term impact of daily supplementation with RC after menopause.

Original languageEnglish
Article number826959
JournalFrontiers in Cardiovascular Medicine
Volume9
Number of pages11
ISSN2297-055X
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - 2022

Bibliographical note

Copyright © 2022 Wickham, Nørregaard, Oxfeldt, Cheung, Gliemann, Hansen and Hellsten.

Keywords

  • Faculty of Science
  • Fermented red clover
  • Phytoestrogen
  • Isoflavones
  • Post-menopausal women
  • Supplementation
  • Cardiovascular health
  • Vascular inflammation
  • Skeletal muscle microcirculation

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