Hypocholesterolemic effects of oat-bran or bean intake for hypercholesterolemic men.

Oat orbean products,richinwater-soluble fiber,havedistinct hypocholester- olemic effects in humans. After a control diet, 20 hypercholesterolemic men were randomly allocated to oat-bran or bean supplemented diets for 21 days on a metabolic ward. Control and test diets provided equivalent energy, fat, and cholesterol but test diets had twice more total and 3-fold more soluble fiber. Oat-bran diets decreased serum cholesterol concentrations by 19% (p <0.0005) and calculatedlow-densitylipoprotein cholesterol by 23% (p < 0.0025). Bean diets decreased serum cholesterol concentrations by 19% (p < 0.0005) and low-density lipoprotein cholesterol by 24% (p < 0.0005). Oat-bran increased fecal weight by 43% but beans did not. While oat-bran increased fecal bile acid excretion, beans had the opposite effect. Oat-bran or bean supplements may have an important role in nutritional management of selected hypercho- lesterolemic patients. Am J C/in Nutr 1984;40: 1146-1155.