Plant Sterol Complex

Overall Health Benefits of Plant Sterol Complex

• Lowers cholesterol levels [1-24]
• Speeds up wound healing [25-26]
• Lowers risk of cardiovascular disease [27-37]
• Prevents Alzheimer’s disease (AD) and boosts cognitive health [38-41]
• Prevents cancer [42-54]

How Plant Sterol Complex Works

Plant sterols are the same as cholesterol with regards to structure. They might help lower your cholesterol levels by limiting the production of cholesterol. They can also control the amount of cholesterol that enters your body.

Proven Health Benefits of Plant Sterol Complex

Lowers Cholesterol Levels

An overwhelming body of clinical evidence suggests that plant sterols can be beneficial in patients with elevated cholesterol levels:

1. In patients with type 2 diabetes, treatment with plant sterols significantly reduced total and low-density lipoprotein (LDL) cholesterol. [1]
2. A study showed that plant sterols can help reduce cholesterol levels through its antioxidant effects. [2]
3. In diabetic and non-diabetic persons with high cholesterol levels, administration with plant sterols for 21 days significantly reduced LDL-cholesterol concentrations compared with baseline. [3]
4. Studies show that foods enriched with plant sterols can effectively reduce blood cholesterol levels in patients with high cholesterol. [4-23]
5. In diabetic patients, consumption of plant sterols significantly reduced blood cholesterol levels. [24]

Speeds up Wound Healing

Plant sterols have also been found to accelerate the wound healing process through various mechanisms:

1. A study showed that plant sterols contain compounds that can help with blood vessel formation, an essential process in wound healing. [25]
2. In rabbits, plant sterols administration enhanced wound healing 15% faster than the commercial cream. [26]

Lowers Risk of Cardiovascular Disease

Numerous studies suggest that plant sterols can lower the risk of cardiovascular disease by improving cholesterol levels and other health parameters:

1. A study showed that plant sterols are considered safe and consistently effective in lowering blood cholesterol. [27]
2. A study showed that plant sterols/stanols caused significant inhibition of cholesterol absorption and lower LDL-C levels by between 8 and 10%. [28]
3. Studies also found that higher dietary intake of plant sterols was associated with a lower risk of cardiovascular disease in patients with high cholesterol levels. [29-35]
4. Studies also reported that plant sterols have the ability to prevent the formation of plaques within the heart arteries. [36-37]

Prevents Alzheimer’s disease (AD) and Boosts Cognitive Health

Studies also suggest that plant sterols can help protect against cognitive dysfunction and AD:

1. A study showed that plant sterols can help lower one’s risk of AD by preventing the formation of abnormal protein structures in the brain. [38]
2. A study also showed that reducing brain cholesterol or replacing it with plant sterols that pass in the blood brain barrier can help prevent the development of AD. [39]
3. In mice, oral administration of plant sterols reduced the prevalence of AD. [40]
4. A study also found that plant sterols can treat memory loss associated with AD. [41]

Prevents Cancer

There’s a good deal of evidence that supports the anti-cancer properties of plant sterols:

1. A study showed that plant sterols can help protect against breast cancer. [42]
2. A review of several studies found that low consumption of plant sterols was associated with a higher risk of cancer. [43]
3. Plant sterols have also been found to reduce the growth of various cancer cells including breast, prostate, and liver. [44]
4. Higher intake of plant sterols from vegetables and fruits has also been found to reduce the risk of gastric cancer. [45]
5. In rats, plant sterols protected against chemically-induced colon tumor. [46]
6. A cell study found that plant sterols inhibited the growth of human prostate cancer cells. [47]
7. In human breast cancer cells, treatment with plant sterols induced programmed cell death. [48]
8. In rats, plant sterol administration significantly reduced the growth of tumors. [49-52]
9. A study reported that plant sterols prevented cancer development by lowering cholesterol levels. [53-54]

References:

1. Available from https://www.diabetesresearchclinicalpractice.com/article/S0168-8227(09)00042-4/fulltext.
2. Berger, A., Jones, P.J. & Abumweis, S.S. Plant sterols: factors affecting their efficacy and safety as functional food ingredients. Lipids Health Dis 3, 5 (2004). https://doi.org/10.1186/1476-511X-3-5.
3. Vivian WY Lau, Mélanie Journoud, Peter JH Jones, Plant sterols are efficacious in lowering plasma LDL and non-HDL cholesterol in hypercholesterolemic type 2 diabetic and nondiabetic persons, The American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, Volume 81, Issue 6, June 2005, Pages 1351–1358, https://doi.org/10.1093/ajcn/81.6.1351.
4. Bernácer, Raquel, Roig, Diana, & Lozano, Blanca. (2015). Plant sterols for adults with hypercholesterolemia treated with or without medication (statins). Revista Española de Nutrición Humana y Dietética, 19(2), 105-115. https://dx.doi.org/10.14306/renhyd.0.0.64.
5. Patel SB. Plant sterols and stanols: their role in health and disease. J Clin Lipidol. 2008;2(2):S11-S19. doi:10.1016/j.jacl.2008.01.007.
6. Chen Y, She Y, Kaur R, Guo N, Zhang X, Zhang R, Gou X. Is Plant Sterols a Good Strategy to Lower Cholesterol? J Oleo Sci. 2019 Sep 4;68(9):811-816. doi: 10.5650/jos.ess19116. Epub 2019 Aug 14. PMID: 31413246.
7. Ras RT, Geleijnse JM, Trautwein EA. LDL-cholesterol-lowering effect of plant sterols and stanols across different dose ranges: a meta-analysis of randomised controlled studies. Br J Nutr. 2014 Jul 28;112(2):214-9. doi: 10.1017/S0007114514000750. Epub 2014 Apr 29. PMID: 24780090; PMCID: PMC4071994.
8. Jones PJH, Shamloo M, MacKay DS, et al. Progress and perspectives in plant sterol and plant stanol research. Nutr Rev. 2018;76(10):725-746. doi:10.1093/nutrit/nuy032.
9. Jones PJH, Shamloo M, MacKay DS, Rideout TC, Myrie SB, Plat J, Roullet JB, Baer DJ, Calkins KL, Davis HR, Barton Duell P, Ginsberg H, Gylling H, Jenkins D, Lütjohann D, Moghadasian M, Moreau RA, Mymin D, Ostlund RE Jr, Ras RT, Ochoa Reparaz J, Trautwein EA, Turley S, Vanmierlo T, Weingärtner O. Progress and perspectives in plant sterol and plant stanol research. Nutr Rev. 2018 Oct 1;76(10):725-746. doi: 10.1093/nutrit/nuy032. PMID: 30101294; PMCID: PMC6130982.
10. Derdemezis CS, Filippatos TD, Mikhailidis DP, Elisaf MS. Review article: effects of plant sterols and stanols beyond low-density lipoprotein cholesterol lowering. J Cardiovasc Pharmacol Ther. 2010 Jun;15(2):120-34. doi: 10.1177/1074248409357921. Epub 2010 Mar 3. PMID: 20200328.
11. Nestel P, Cehun M, Pomeroy S, Abbey M, Weldon G. Cholesterol-lowering effects of plant sterol esters and non-esterified stanols in margarine, butter and low-fat foods. Eur J Clin Nutr. 2001 Dec;55(12):1084-90. doi: 10.1038/sj.ejcn.1601264. PMID: 11781675.
12. Ellegard LH, Andersson SW, Normén AL, Andersson HA. Dietary plant sterols and cholesterol metabolism. Nutr Rev. 2007 Jan;65(1):39-45. doi: 10.1111/j.1753-4887.2007.tb00266.x. PMID: 17310858.
13. Tikkanen MJ, Högström P, Tuomilehto J, Keinänen-Kiukaanniemi S, Sundvall J, Karppanen H. Effect of a diet based on low-fat foods enriched with nonesterified plant sterols and mineral nutrients on serum cholesterol. Am J Cardiol. 2001 Nov 15;88(10):1157-62. doi: 10.1016/s0002-9149(01)02053-7. PMID: 11703963.
14. Lees AM, Mok HY, Lees RS, McCluskey MA, Grundy SM. Plant sterols as cholesterol-lowering agents: clinical trials in patients with hypercholesterolemia and studies of sterol balance. Atherosclerosis. 1977 Nov;28(3):325-38. doi: 10.1016/0021-9150(77)90180-0. PMID: 597345.
15. Puspa J, Klör HU. Pflanzen-Sterole und Stanole–Wissenschaftliche Befunde zur Wirkung und Sicherheit [Plant sterols and stanols]. Ther Umsch. 2007 Mar;64(3):153-9. German. doi: 10.1024/0040-5930.64.3.153. PMID: 17323287.
16. Reiner Z, Tedeschi-Reiner E. Ucinci biljnih sterola na hiperkolesterolemiju [The effects of plant sterols on hypercholesterolemia]. Lijec Vjesn. 2007 Aug-Sep;129(8-9):276-81. Croatian. PMID: 18198627.
17. Dumolt JH, Rideout TC. The Lipid-lowering Effects and Associated Mechanisms of Dietary Phytosterol Supplementation. Curr Pharm Des. 2017;23(34):5077-5085. doi:10.2174/1381612823666170725142337.
18. Law M. Plant sterol and stanol margarines and health. BMJ. 2000;320(7238):861-864. doi:10.1136/bmj.320.7238.861.
19. Clifton PM, Noakes M, Sullivan D, Erichsen N, Ross D, Annison G, Fassoulakis A, Cehun M, Nestel P. Cholesterol-lowering effects of plant sterol esters differ in milk, yoghurt, bread and cereal. Eur J Clin Nutr. 2004 Mar;58(3):503-9. doi: 10.1038/sj.ejcn.1601837. PMID: 14985690.
20. Alphonse PA, Ramprasath V, Jones PJ. Effect of dietary cholesterol and plant sterol consumption on plasma lipid responsiveness and cholesterol trafficking in healthy individuals. Br J Nutr. 2017 Jan;117(1):56-66. doi: 10.1017/S0007114516004530. Epub 2017 Jan 23. PMID: 28112077.
21. Sanclemente T, Marques-Lopes I, Puzo J, García-Otín AL. Role of naturally-occurring plant sterols on intestinal cholesterol absorption and plasmatic levels. J Physiol Biochem. 2009 Mar;65(1):87-98. doi: 10.1007/BF03165972. PMID: 19588734.
22. AbuMweis SS, Jones PJ. Cholesterol-lowering effect of plant sterols. Curr Atheroscler Rep. 2008 Dec;10(6):467-72. doi: 10.1007/s11883-008-0073-4. PMID: 18937893.
23. Trautwein EA, Vermeer MA, Hiemstra H, Ras RT. LDL-Cholesterol Lowering of Plant Sterols and Stanols-Which Factors Influence Their Efficacy?. Nutrients. 2018;10(9):1262. Published 2018 Sep 7. doi:10.3390/nu10091262.
24. Trautwein EA, Koppenol WP, de Jong A, et al. Plant sterols lower LDL-cholesterol and triglycerides in dyslipidemic individuals with or at risk of developing type 2 diabetes; a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled study. Nutr Diabetes. 2018;8(1):30. Published 2018 May 25. doi:10.1038/s41387-018-0039-8.
25. Moon, E., Lee, Y.M., Lee, O. et al. A ncovel angiogenic factor derived from Aloe vera gel: β-sitosterol, a plant sterol. Angiogenesis 3, 117–123 (1999). https://doi.org/10.1023/A:1009058232389
26. Ahmed, A., Taher, M., Mandal, U.K. et al. Pharmacological properties of Centella asiatica hydrogel in accelerating wound healing in rabbits. BMC Complement Altern Med 19, 213 (2019). https://doi.org/10.1186/s12906-019-2625-2
27. Scolaro B, Andrade LFS, Castro IA. Cardiovascular Disease Prevention: The Earlier the Better? A Review of Plant Sterol Metabolism and Implications of Childhood Supplementation. Int J Mol Sci. 2019;21(1):128. Published 2019 Dec 24. doi:10.3390/ijms21010128.
28. Available from https://www.atherosclerosis-journal.com/article/S0021-9150(13)00694-1/fulltext.
29. Amir Shaghaghi M, Abumweis SS, Jones PJ. Cholesterol-lowering efficacy of plant sterols/stanols provided in capsule and tablet formats: results of a systematic review and meta-analysis. J Acad Nutr Diet. 2013 Nov;113(11):1494-503. doi: 10.1016/j.jand.2013.07.006. PMID: 24144075.
30. Cabral CE, Klein MRST. Phytosterols in the Treatment of Hypercholesterolemia and Prevention of Cardiovascular Diseases. Arq Bras Cardiol. 2017;109(5):475-482. doi:10.5935/abc.20170158.
31. Patch CS, Tapsell LC, Williams PG, Gordon M. Plant sterols as dietary adjuvants in the reduction of cardiovascular risk: theory and evidence. Vasc Health Risk Manag. 2006;2(2):157-162. doi:10.2147/vhrm.2006.2.2.157.
32. Genser B, Silbernagel G, De Backer G, et al. Plant sterols and cardiovascular disease: a systematic review and meta-analysis. Eur Heart J. 2012;33(4):444-451. doi:10.1093/eurheartj/ehr441.
33. Scolaro B, Andrade LFS, Castro IA. Cardiovascular Disease Prevention: The Earlier the Better? A Review of Plant Sterol Metabolism and Implications of Childhood Supplementation. Int J Mol Sci. 2019;21(1):128. Published 2019 Dec 24. doi:10.3390/ijms21010128.
34. Devaraj S, Jialal I. The role of dietary supplementation with plant sterols and stanols in the prevention of cardiovascular disease. Nutr Rev. 2006 Jul;64(7 Pt 1):348-54. doi: 10.1111/j.1753-4887.2006.tb00219.x. PMID: 16910223.
35. Gylling H, Plat J, Turley S, Ginsberg HN, Ellegård L, Jessup W, Jones PJ, Lütjohann D, Maerz W, Masana L, Silbernagel G, Staels B, Borén J, Catapano AL, De Backer G, Deanfield J, Descamps OS, Kovanen PT, Riccardi G, Tokgözoglu L, Chapman MJ; European Atherosclerosis Society Consensus Panel on Phytosterols. Plant sterols and plant stanols in the management of dyslipidaemia and prevention of cardiovascular disease. Atherosclerosis. 2014 Feb;232(2):346-60. doi: 10.1016/j.atherosclerosis.2013.11.043. Epub 2013 Nov 23. PMID: 24468148.
36. Köhler J, Teupser D, Elsässer A, Weingärtner O. Plant sterol enriched functional food and atherosclerosis. Br J Pharmacol. 2017;174(11):1281-1289. doi:10.1111/bph.13764.
37. Silbernagel G, Genser B, Nestel P, März W. Plant sterols and atherosclerosis. Curr Opin Lipidol. 2013 Feb;24(1):12-7. doi: 10.1097/MOL.0b013e32835b6271. PMID: 23165086.
38. Vanmierlo, Tim & Popp, Julius & Kölsch, H & Friedrichs, Silvia & Jessen, F & Stoffel-Wagner, Birgit & Bertsch, Thomas & Hartmann, Tobias & Maier, W & von Bergmann, Klaus & Steinbusch, Harry & Mulder, Monique & Lütjohann, Dieter. (2011). The plant sterol brassicasterol as additional CSF biomarker in Alzheimer’s disease. Acta psychiatrica Scandinavica. 124. 184-92. 10.1111/j.1600-0447.2011.01713.x.
39. Available from https://www.ocl-journal.org/component/makeref/?task=show&type=html&doi=10.1051/ocl/2018038.
40. Burg VK, Grimm HS, Rothhaar TL, et al. Plant sterols the better cholesterol in Alzheimer’s disease? A mechanistical study. J Neurosci. 2013;33(41):16072-16087. doi:10.1523/JNEUROSCI.1506-13.2013.
41. Available from https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fphar.2017.00697/full.
42. Grattan BJ Jr. Plant sterols as anticancer nutrients: evidence for their role in breast cancer. Nutrients. 2013;5(2):359-387. Published 2013 Jan 31. doi:10.3390/nu5020359.
43. Jiang L, Zhao X, Xu J, et al. The Protective Effect of Dietary Phytosterols on Cancer Risk: A Systematic Meta-Analysis. J Oncol. 2019;2019:7479518. Published 2019 Jun 23. doi:10.1155/2019/7479518.
44. Ramprasath VR, Awad AB. Role of Phytosterols in Cancer Prevention and Treatment. J AOAC Int. 2015 May-Jun;98(3):735-738. doi: 10.5740/jaoacint.SGERamprasath. PMID: 26086253.
45. De Stefani E, Boffetta P, Ronco AL, Brennan P, Deneo-Pellegrini H, Carzoglio JC, Mendilaharsu M. Plant sterols and risk of stomach cancer: a case-control study in Uruguay. Nutr Cancer. 2000;37(2):140-4. doi: 10.1207/S15327914NC372_4. PMID: 11142085.
46. Raicht RF, Cohen BI, Fazzini E, Sarwal A, Takahashi M. Protective effect of plant sterols against chemically-induced colon tumor in rats. J Cancer Res 1980;40:403–5.
47. Awad AB, Gan Y, Fink CS. Effect of beta-sitosterol, a plant sterol on growth, protein phosphatase 2A and phospholipids D in NcaP Cells. Nutr Cancer 2000;36:74–8.
48. Awad AB, Downie D, Fink CS. Inhibition of growth and stimulation of apoptosis by beta-sitosterol treatment of MDA-MB-231 human breast cancer cells in culture. Int J Mol Med 2000;5:541–5.
49. Awad AB, Chen YC, Fink CS, Hennessey T. Beta-sitosterols inhibits HT-29 human colon cancer cell growth and alters membrane lipids. Anticancer Res 1996;16:2797–804.
50. Hannun YA, Linardic CM. Sphingomyelin breakdown products: antiproliferative and tumor suppressor lipids. Biochim Biophys Acta 1994;1154:223–36.
51. Wolff RA, Dobrowsky RT, Bielawski A, Obeid LM, Hannun YA. Role of ceramide-activated protein phosphatase in ceramide mediated signal transduction. J Biol Chem 1994;269:19607–9.
52. Leikin AI, Brenner RR. Fatty acid desaturase activities are modulated by phytosterol incorporation in microsomes. Biochim Biophys Acta 1989;1005:187–91.
53. Woyengo TA, Ramprasath VR, Jones PJ. Anticancer effects of phytosterols. Eur J Clin Nutr. 2009 Jul;63(7):813-20. doi: 10.1038/ejcn.2009.29. Epub 2009 Jun 3. PMID: 19491917.
54. Available from https://cancerres.aacrjournals.org/content/67/9_Supplement/1650.