A six-month clinical trial suggests that combining multiple nutrients and plant-derived compounds could improve blood vessel function and lower systolic blood pressure, offering a potential new approach to supporting vascular health as we age.
Study: Acute and 6-month vascular effects of a multi-component nutritional supplement: a randomized controlled trial. Image credit: PeopleImages/Shutterstock.com
A multi-compound nutritional supplement designed to target complementary vascular aging mechanisms improves markers of vascular health in healthy adults, according to a new study published in European Heart Journal Open.
How multiple biological pathways contribute to vascular aging
Vascular aging, characterized by gradual structural and functional deterioration of blood vessels over time, significantly contributes to the risk of cardiovascular disease and related mortality. Major markers of vascular aging include endothelial dysfunction, increased arterial stiffness, and elevated blood pressure.
Vascular aging is triggered by several interconnected biological processes, including oxidative stress, chronic, low-grade inflammation, mitochondrial dysfunction, impaired cellular stress response, and altered nitric oxide bioavailability.
A growing body of evidence suggests that specific bioactive compounds, including polyphenols, amino acids, and micronutrients, can help counter aspects of vascular aging by improving endothelial function and reducing oxidative stress and inflammation. However, most of these compounds have been studied individually as single-compound interventions, and therefore additive or synergistic benefits of multi-compound interventions remain poorly understood.
Multi-compound nutritional interventions containing low doses of each compound can target several complementary pathways simultaneously, thereby potentially improving health benefits and reducing dose-related adverse side effects. However, clinical evidence supporting multi-compound interventions in humans is limited.
To address this gap in the literature, researchers at the University of Surrey, UK, conducted a randomized controlled trial to investigate the vascular health benefits of a multi-compound nutritional supplement in healthy adults.
Researchers tested daily nutritional supplementation over six months
The study included a total of 61 healthy adults who were randomized into the intervention group and the control group. Of these, 43 participants completed both study visits and were included in the primary analysis. Participants in the intervention group consumed a multi-compound nutritional powder supplement containing vitamins and minerals, amino acids, and plant-derived bioactive compounds daily for six months. These compounds are known to target complementary pathways relevant to vascular aging. The control group participants consumed a similar-looking powder product without active ingredients for the same period.
Vascular aging parameters, including endothelial function, arterial stiffness, blood pressure, lipid profile, and 10-year cardiovascular disease risk, were assessed at baseline and after six months. Vascular assessments were also conducted one hour after the first dose.
Supplement improves endothelial function and reduces arterial stiffness
The study findings showed a significant improvement in endothelial function in the intervention group participants who consumed the multi-compound nutritional supplement for six months. In contrast, endothelial function remained largely unchanged in the control group. The six-month change in endothelial function between baseline and post-intervention was inversely correlated with its baseline level. Endothelial function also improved significantly one hour after the first dose.
Regarding arterial stiffness, the intervention group showed a significant reduction at six months, whereas the control group showed an increase. The changes in arterial stiffness between baseline and post-intervention were inversely correlated with the changes in endothelial function.
In the intervention group, systolic blood pressure reduced significantly at six months. However, the reduction was much smaller in the control group. The six-month change in systolic blood pressure from baseline to post-intervention was inversely correlated with baseline level and positively correlated with changes in arterial stiffness. Diastolic blood pressure did not differ significantly between groups post-intervention.
Lipid profile, including total cholesterol, low-density lipoprotein-cholesterol, high-density lipoprotein-cholesterol, and triglycerides, remained comparable between the groups post-intervention.
Estimated ten-year risk of first-onset atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease showed a slight reduction in the intervention group and an increase in the control group post-intervention. The risk was calculated on the basis of age, sex, systolic blood pressure, smoking status, and non-high-density lipoprotein cholesterol, and was calibrated to region-specific background risk.
Given that age, sex, smoking status, and regional calibration remained unchanged during follow-up, and no significant change in lipid profile was observed between the groups, the researchers concluded that the observed difference in 10-year risk was driven primarily by the difference in systolic blood pressure between the groups. The study did not assess actual cardiovascular events.
Promising vascular benefits require larger, longer clinical trials
The study highlights the potential vascular health benefits of a multi-compound nutritional supplement in healthy middle-aged and older adults. Specifically, these preliminary findings demonstrate that daily consumption of this supplement can improve endothelial function, arterial stiffness, and systolic blood pressure, with the reduction in systolic blood pressure contributing to a modest decrease in estimated 10-year risk of developing cardiovascular disease.
Vascular aging is one of the major clinical manifestations of the multifactorial aging process that gradually triggers the development and progression of age-related cardiovascular and cerebrovascular diseases over time.
The multi-compound supplement tested in the current study includes ingredients that are known to target complementary biological pathways associated with aging and vascular dysfunction.
The bioactive compounds and their metabolites present in the supplement may provide vascular health benefits through receptor-mediated signaling, enzyme modulation, antioxidant and anti-inflammatory effects, altered endothelial nitric oxide bioavailability, changes in vascular smooth muscle tone, improvement in mitochondrial function, changes in gut microbiota composition, or autonomic and hemodynamic regulation.
However, the study did not assess mechanistic biomarkers in the blood, and therefore cannot explain which specific compound, combinations of compounds, or cellular and molecular pathways are driving the observed vascular effects.
The researchers also noted that the relatively small, single-center study and participant attrition limited the findings. Moreover, because the final measurements were taken approximately 24 hours after the last dose, the study could not distinguish lasting vascular changes from residual effects of recent supplementation.
NOVOS Labs supported the study by supplying the supplement and control product and providing research funding. One co-author was employed by the company, although the researchers reported that the funder had no role in the study design, primary analysis, or interpretation of the findings.
Future studies with larger sample sizes, mechanistic endpoints, and longer-term clinical outcomes are needed to determine whether the observed vascular health benefits translate into fewer cardiovascular events and longer lifespan.
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