Long-term effect of calcium-vitamin D(3) fortified milk on blood pressure and serum lipid concentrations in healthy older men.
OBJECTIVE
Some epidemiological and clinical studies have shown that increased dairy consumption or calcium and/or vitamin D supplementation can have a beneficial effect on blood pressure, and lipid and lipoprotein concentrations. The aim of this study was to assess the long-term effects of calcium-vitamin D(3) fortified milk on blood pressure and lipid-lipoprotein concentrations in community-dwelling older men.


METHODS
This is a substudy of a 2-year randomized controlled trial in which 167 men aged >50 years were assigned to receive either 400 ml per day of reduced fat (approximately 1%) milk fortified with approximately 1000 mg of calcium and 800 IU of vitamin D(3) or to a control group receiving no additional fortified milk. Weight, blood pressure, lipid and lipoprotein concentrations were measured every 6 months. Participants on lipid-lowering (n=32) or antihypertensive medication (n=39) were included, but those who commenced, increased or decreased their medication throughout the intervention were excluded (n=27).


RESULTS
In the 140 men included in this study (milk, n=73; control, n=67), there were no significant effects of the calcium-vitamin D(3) fortified milk on weight, systolic or diastolic blood pressure, total cholesterol, high-density lipoprotein or low-density lipoprotein cholesterol or triglyceride concentrations at any time throughout the intervention. Similar results were observed after excluding men taking antihypertensive or lipid-lowering medication or limiting the analysis to those with baseline calcium intakes <1000 mg per day and/or with hypovitaminosis D (25(OH)D <75 nmol/l).


CONCLUSIONS
Supplementation with reduced-fat calcium-vitamin D(3) fortified milk did not have a beneficial (nor detrimental) effect on blood pressure, lipid or lipoprotein concentrations in healthy community-dwelling older men.
Daly
R M
RM
Department of Medicine (RMH/WH), Western Hospital, University of Melbourne, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia. rdaly@unimelb.edu.au
Nowson
C A
CA
D000368:Aged; D000818:Animals; D001794:Blood Pressure / Q000187:drug effects*; D001835:Body Weight / Q000187:drug effects; D002118:Calcium / Q000008:administration & dosage / Q000494:pharmacology*; D002136:Calcium, Dietary / Q000494:pharmacology; D002762:Cholecalciferol / Q000008:administration & dosage / Q000494:pharmacology*; D005527:Food, Fortified; D006801:Humans; D008055:Lipids / Q000097:blood*; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D008892:Milk
D002136:Calcium, Dietary; D008055:Lipids; D002762:Cholecalciferol; D002118:Calcium