Effect of consuming a purple-fleshed sweet potato beverage on health-related biomarkers and safety parameters in Caucasian subjects with elevated levels of blood pressure and liver function biomarkers: a 4-week, open-label, non-comparative trial

• Published in: Bioscience of Microbiota, Food and Health Vol. 35; no. 3; pp. 129 - 136
• Main Authors: OKI, Tomoyuki, KANO, Mitsuyoshi, WATANABE, Osamu, GOTO, Kazuhisa, BOELSMA, Esther, ISHIKAWA, Fumiyasu, SUDA, Ikuo
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Japan BMFH Press 2016
• Subjects: anthocyanin; blood pressure; Caucasians; liver function biomarker; safety parameter; Solanum tuberosum; sweet potato; blood pressure; sweet potato; anthocyanin; safety parameter; liver function biomarker; Caucasians
• ISSN: 2186-3342; 2186-6953; 2186-3342
• DOI: 10.12938/bmfh.2015-026

An open-label study with one treatment arm was conducted to investigate changes in health-related biomarkers (blood pressure and liver enzyme activity) and the safety of 4 weeks of consuming a purple-fleshed sweet potato beverage in Caucasian subjects. Twenty healthy adults, 18–70 years of age, with a body mass index >25 kg/m2, elevated blood pressure and elevated levels of liver function biomarkers consumed two cartons of purple-fleshed sweet potato beverage (125 ml, including 117 mg anthocyanin per carton) daily for 4 weeks. Hematology, serum clinical profile, dipstick urinalysis and blood pressure were determined before consumption, at 2 and 4 weeks of consumption and after a 2-week washout period. A trend was found toward lowering systolic blood pressure during the treatment period (p=0.0590). No significant changes were found in diastolic blood pressure throughout the study period. Systolic blood pressure was significantly lower after 4 weeks of consumption compared with before consumption (p=0.0125) and was significantly higher after the 2-week washout period compared with after consumption (p=0.0496). The serum alanine aminotransferase level significantly increased over time, but aspartate aminotransferase and γ-glutamyltransferase levels stayed within the normal range of reference values. Safety parameters of the blood and urine showed no clinically relevant changes. The consumption of a purple-fleshed sweet potato beverage for 4 weeks resulted in no clinically relevant changes in safety parameters of the blood and urine and showed a trend toward lowering systolic blood pressure.