Relationship between the intake of total flavonoid and flavan-3-ols, and 5-year cardiovascular disease risk scores in New Zealand adults

Objective: The aim of the study was to expand the New Zealand Food Composition Database (NZFCD) to include flavonoid data, in order to determine the relationship between the intake of (a) total flavonoids and (b) flavan-3-ols, and 5-year cardiovascular disease (CVD) risk score in New Zealand adults. Design: The present study used data from the New Zealand Adult Nutrition Survey (NZANS) 08/09 - a national population-based nutrition survey, conducted in a sample of 4271 participants. Flavonoid and Flavan-3-ol intake was assessed using 24-hour food recalls. Data on blood pressure, lipid status, diabetes status (HbA1c), smoking status, ethnicity, age and gender were used to determine 5-year CVD risk scores. Each food in the FOODfiles dataset of the NZFCD was updated using the flavonoid databases: USDA and Phenol explorer. To determine the relationship between flavonoid intake and CVD risk, logistic regression was used to investigate relationships between categories of X intake with categories of CVD risk. Results: Those in the high total flavonoid intake category were less likely to have a high CVD risk score than those with a low total flavonoid intake, after adjustment for age, body mass index (BMI), sex, ethnicity and New Zealand Deprivation Index (NZdep). Similarly, those with a high intake of flavan-3-ols were less likely to have a high CVD risk score. Those with a low intake of flavan-3-ols, were more likely to have a high CVD risk score. Foods that contributed most to the quantitative intake of flavan-3-ols were sugar/sweets, fruit, alcoholic and non-alcoholic beverages. Conclusions: New Zealand adults with a higher intake of total flavonoids and in particular flavan-3-ols are likely to have a lower CVD risk score. Therefore, consuming foods higher in flavan-3-ols, such as cocoa products, fruit and tea, may help to reduce the risk of developing CVD, as long as a balanced diet is followed