Whole grains are associated with serum concentrations of high sensitivity C-reactive protein among premenopausal women.

In premenopausal women, elevated C-reactive protein (CRP) concentrations have been associated with an increased risk of negative reproductive outcomes. Whole grain consumption has been associated with lower CRP concentrations in older women; however, less is known about this relationship in younger women. We investigated whether whole grain intake was associated with serum high sensitivity CRP (hs-CRP) concentrations in young women. BioCycle was a prospective cohort study conducted at the University of Buffalo from 2005 to 2007, which followed 259 healthy women aged 18-44 y for <or= 2 menstrual cycles. hs-CRP concentrations were measured longitudinally <or= 8 times/cycle with visits standardized to menstrual cycle phase. Whole grain intake was estimated by 24-h recalls <or= 4 times/cycle. Servings were defined as 16 g or 125 mL of a 100% whole grain food. Whole grain intake was inversely associated with hs-CRP concentrations after adjusting for age, race, BMI, illness, and antiinflammatory drug use. Consumers of between 0 and 1 serving/d of whole grains had, on average, 11.5% lower hs-CRP concentrations (P = 0.02) and consumers of >or= 1 serving/d had 12.3% lower hs-CRP concentrations (P = 0.02) compared with nonconsumers. Women who consumed >or= 1 serving/d of whole grain had a lower probability of having moderate (P = 0.008) or elevated (P = 0.001) hs-CRP according to the AHA criteria compared with nonconsumers. Given that elevated concentrations of hs-CRP have been linked to adverse reproductive outcomes and pregnancy complications, interventions targeting whole grain consumption may have the potential to improve health status among young women.

[1]  L. Duntas,et al.  Selenium and Inflammation: Underlying Anti-inflammatory Mechanisms , 2009, Hormone and metabolic research = Hormon- und Stoffwechselforschung = Hormones et metabolisme.

[2]  J. Connell,et al.  Low grade chronic inflammation in women with polycystic ovarian syndrome. , 2001, The Journal of clinical endocrinology and metabolism.

[3]  R. Levy,et al.  Estimation of the concentration of low-density lipoprotein cholesterol in plasma, without use of the preparative ultracentrifuge. , 1972, Clinical chemistry.

[4]  Ross J. Harris,et al.  Associations of circulating C-reactive protein and interleukin-6 with cancer risk: findings from two prospective cohorts and a meta-analysis , 2009, Cancer Causes & Control.

[5]  F. Hu,et al.  Whole-grain, bran, and cereal fiber intakes and markers of systemic inflammation in diabetic women. , 2006, Diabetes care.

[6]  Enrique F Schisterman,et al.  BioCycle study: design of the longitudinal study of the oxidative stress and hormone variation during the menstrual cycle. , 2009, Paediatric and perinatal epidemiology.

[7]  D. King.  Dietary fiber, inflammation, and cardiovascular disease. , 2005, Molecular nutrition & food research.

[8]  P. Kris-Etherton,et al.  The effects of a whole grain-enriched hypocaloric diet on cardiovascular disease risk factors in men and women with metabolic syndrome. , 2008, The American journal of clinical nutrition.

[9]  N Rifai,et al.  Clinical efficacy of an automated high-sensitivity C-reactive protein assay. , 1999, Clinical chemistry.

[10]  I. Hertz-Picciotto,et al.  Methods of covariate selection: directed acyclic graphs and the change-in-estimate procedure. , 2009, American journal of epidemiology.

[11]  J. Lessing,et al.  Higher C-reactive protein levels during IVF stimulation are associated with ART failure. , 2007, Journal of reproductive immunology.

[12]  C. Seal.  Whole grains and CVD risk , 2006, Proceedings of the Nutrition Society.

[13]  Judith Wylie-Rosett,et al.  Nutrition Recommendations and Interventions for Diabetes , 2008, Diabetes Care.

[14]  J. Manson,et al.  C-reactive protein, interleukin 6, and risk of developing type 2 diabetes mellitus. , 2001, JAMA.

[15]  E. Brindle,et al.  C-reactive protein across the menstrual cycle. , 2008, American journal of physical anthropology.

[16]  S. Daniels,et al.  Summary of American Heart Association Diet and Lifestyle Recommendations Revision 2006 , 2006, Arteriosclerosis, thrombosis, and vascular biology.

[17]  P. Corey,et al.  Sources of variance in 24-hour dietary recall data: implications for nutrition study design and interpretation. , 1979, The American journal of clinical nutrition.

[18]  J. Jones.  Mining whole grains for functional components , 2007 .

[19]  B. Ainsworth,et al.  International physical activity questionnaire: 12-country reliability and validity. , 2003, Medicine and science in sports and exercise.

[20]  P. Ridker,et al.  Prospective study of C-reactive protein and the risk of future cardiovascular events among apparently healthy women. , 1998, Circulation.

[21]  Enrique F Schisterman,et al.  Timing clinic visits to phases of the menstrual cycle by using a fertility monitor: the BioCycle Study. , 2008, American journal of epidemiology.

[22]  D. Rubin,et al.  Statistical Analysis with Missing Data , 1988 .

[23]  S Greenland,et al.  Multilevel Modeling in Epidemiology with GLIMMIX , 2000, Epidemiology.

[24]  N Rifai,et al.  High-sensitivity C-reactive protein: a novel and promising marker of coronary heart disease. , 2001, Clinical chemistry.

[25]  D. Luthy,et al.  A prospective study of maternal serum C-reactive protein concentrations and risk of preeclampsia. , 2004, American journal of hypertension.

[26]  M. Szklo,et al.  Whole grain intake and its cross-sectional association with obesity, insulin resistance, inflammation, diabetes and subclinical CVD: The MESA Study , 2007, British Journal of Nutrition.

[27]  E. Rimm,et al.  Whole grains, bran, and germ in relation to homocysteine and markers of glycemic control, lipids, and inflammation 1. , 2006, The American journal of clinical nutrition.

[28]  Michelle A. Williams,et al.  A prospective study of maternal serum C-reactive protein (CRP) concentrations and risk of gestational diabetes mellitus. , 2004, Paediatric and perinatal epidemiology.

[29]  D. Rubin,et al.  Statistical Analysis with Missing Data. , 1989 .

[30]  A. Eldridge,et al.  Whole Grain Consumption and Body Mass Index in Adult Women: An Analysis of NHANES 1999-2000 and the USDA Pyramid Servings Database , 2008, Journal of the American College of Nutrition.

[31]  R. Turner,et al.  Homeostasis model assessment: insulin resistance and β-cell function from fasting plasma glucose and insulin concentrations in man , 1985, Diabetologia.

[32]  Sidney C. Smith,et al.  MARKERS OF INFLAMMATION AND CARDIOVASCULAR DISEASE: APPLICATION TO CLINICAL AND PUBLIC HEALTH PRACTICE: A STATEMENT FOR HEALTHCARE PROFESSIONALS FROM THE CENTERS FOR DISEASE CONTROL AND PREVENTION AND THE AMERICAN HEART ASSOCIATION , 2003 .

[33]  Michelle A. Williams,et al.  Maternal serum C-reactive protein concentrations in early pregnancy and subsequent risk of preterm delivery. , 2007, Clinical biochemistry.

[34]  R. Carroll,et al.  A new statistical method for estimating the usual intake of episodically consumed foods with application to their distribution. , 2006, Journal of the American Dietetic Association.