Impaired microvascular but not macrovascular function noted two hours after meal consumption
TUESDAY, Oct. 30 (HealthDay News) -- A single high-fat meal has detrimental effects on vascular function, according to a study presented at the annual Canadian Cardiovascular Congress, held from Oct. 27 to 31 in Toronto.
Vincent Lee, from the University of Calgary in Canada, and colleagues examined the effect of a single high-fat commercial breakfast meal (900 calories; 50 g fat) on microvascular function (as assessed by hyperemic velocity time integral) and macrovascular function (as assessed by flow-mediated dilation) in 20 healthy, young (mean age, 22.9 years) non-smoking subjects without cardiovascular disease. Micro- and macrovascular function were assessed after consumption of the high-fat meal (meal day) and on a control day without the high-fat meal.
The researchers found that, after consumption of the high-fat meal, microvascular function significantly declined by 15 to 20 percent after two hours; this change was significantly different from measures conducted on the control day. In contrast, there was no significant change in macrovascular function on the meal day or control day.
"Our results suggest that a single high-fat meal affects the microvascular bed, impairing velocity time integral, but not flow-mediated dilation," Lee and colleagues conclude. "This suggests that the association between a high-fat diet and atherosclerosis may be due to impairment of the microvascular bed, an impact that can be seen in an acute time frame."
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