According to a study published on April 2016 in the Journal of International Research in Medical and Pharmaceutical Sciences a group of Moroccan medical doctors and scientists confirm the positive effects of culinary argan oil on hemodialysis patients. The study focused on ‘ Hemodialysis-associated dyslipidemia: Effect of Virgin Argan Oil Consumption ’.
The study demonstrated that consumption of culinary argan oil was beneficial and it efficaciously modulated blood lipid levels of patients with dyslipidemia. Five weeks after the research began it was found that the patients who were routinely given culinary argan oil showed decreased blood LDL (bad cholesterol level) and triglycerides level while the HDL ( the good cholesterol level) increased.
What are triglycerides?
Normally present, triglycerides are the main storage form of energy. Extra calories from food which are not meant to be used right away in the body are converted into triglycerides. These triglycerides are stored in fat cells from where they are released after hormonal action. High levels of triglycerides (hypertriglyceridemia) poses health risks. Hypertriglyceridemia is known to increase heart attack risks and it also causes dyslipidemia.
What are lipoproteins?
Special particles made up of both lipids and protein are known as lipoproteins. They are molecular level trucks to carry the fats wherever they are needed. Increase in blood lipoprotein levels is known as hyperlipoproteinemia. Hyperlipoproteinemia also increases the risks of heart diseases and it also upsets lipid levels in blood causing dyslipidemia.
What is dyslipidemia and why is it important to control?
The elevation of plasma triglycerides, cholesterol or low-density lipoproteins is known as dyslipidemia. It contributes to the development of atherosclerosis. Consumption of culinary argan oil has proven useful for modulating lipids level in blood.
Most of the hemodialysis patients suffer from dyslipidemia associated cardiovascular problems. These hemodialysis patients have increased levels of LDL (bad cholesterol) and triglycerides whereas levels of HDL (good cholesterol) decreases in the blood of such patients. High blood cholesterol level in hemodialysis patients is positively associated with cardiovascular mortality, that is why "statins" - known drugs to lower blood cholesterol - are used. But there is controversy about their safety.
According to this research culinary argan oil is an effective way to help handle the problem of high blood cholesterol. Simply including it in the treatment helps to prevent atheroma and coronary heart disease related to plaque formation. (Blood lipids are key elements to build up the plaque atheroma and lead to heart attack and brain blood circulation issues).
It has been found that consuming culinary argan oil is beneficial for health as it improves cholesterol metabolism in hemodialysis patients. It enriches the body with antioxidants. (molecules, such as gamma-tocopherol "vitamin E", carotenoïdes, polyphenols and sterols).
The antioxidant properties of argan oil are well known. They bring a positive effect because the antioxidants molecules (gamma tocopherols, carotenoïds, and mainly polyphenols) protect cells and molecular species from being hurt by oxygen free radicals (OFR). These antioxidants are OFR scavengers, and in doing so, they prevent the harmful effect of these free radicals on cellular components from being oxidized and therefore losing their physiological roles.
Argan oil also brings two important fatty acids for human health; oleic and linoleic acid, which are essential for the body and are believed to participate in the positive management of hemodialysis-associated dyslipidemia.
In hemodialysis patients, more than 50% of death is caused by cardiovascular events.
Researchers have concluded that consumption of culinary argan oil is efficient and efficacious as it modulates blood lipids in hemodialysis patients with dyslipidemia . Culinary argan oil is known to decrease the blood triglyceride and bad lipoproteins levels (LDLs).
Argan Oil - A Supreme Food
As a rule about 30% of our food should consist of fats. 25% being saturated fats and the rest from mono and polyunsaturated fats. These fats come from different sources such as:
- Fishes
- Vegetable oils
- Almonds, nuts and other dried fruits
Argan oil contains more vitamin E than olive oil and many other vegetable oils, and it mainly differs from other vegetable oils in that it contains more antioxidant carotenoïds, sterols (schotenol and spinasterol) and polyphenol molecules (mainly ferulic acid)
Sources:
- Journal of International Research in Medical and Pharmaceutical Sciences, April 2016.
- Fatima Zahra Batta(1), Tarik Sqalli Houssaini (1,2), Kaoutar Alaoui Sekkouri (1), Hanae Alaoui, (1), Souad Dhari (1), Khadija Alaoui Belghiti (1), Mohamed Arrayhani (1,2) and Mourad Errasfa (2,3).
- (1) Department of Nephrology and Renal Transplantation, CHU Hassan II, Fez, Morocco.
- (2) Laboratory in Molecular Basis in Human Pathologies and Therapeutic Tools, University Sidi Mohamed Ben Abdellah, Fez, Morocco.
- (3) Department of Pharmacology, Faculty of Medicine and Pharmacy, Fez, Morocco.: mourad.er-rasfa@usmba.ac.ma