RESUMO
Cardiovascular diseases are the most important causes of mortality in Iran. Hypercholesterolemia is one of the major risk factors for cardiovascular diseases. Dietary modification such as cereal bran consumption is an approach to reduce this risk factor. The purpose of this present study was to compare the effects of rice bran and wheat bran on serum lipids in hypercholesterolemic women. This study was a randomized clinical trial in which 19 women aged 35-65 years with fasting serum total cholesterol 240-300 mg/dl randomly allocated in two groups of wheat bran and rice bran. All subjects recieved 40 g/day bran in addition to their usual diet for 4 weeks. Anthropometric measurements, dietary assessments by using a 24-hr dietary recall questionnaire and determination of serum lipids were done at the beginning and the end of the study. Data were statistically analyzed by t-test and paired t-test. There were no significant differences between groups for mean body weight, BMI and dietary confounding factors. During 4 weeks, wheat bran significantly reduced serum total cholesterol and LDL-C by 11% and 21% respectively [P<0.01] but rice bran had no effects on these parameters. No significant changes were found in mean serum triglyceride, HDL-C levels, LDL-C/ HDL-C and total cholesterol/ HDL-C ratios in both groups. It is concluded that wheat bran have benefical effects on serum total cholesterol and LDL-C levels in hypercholesterolemic women in comparision with rice bran