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ABSTRACT: The present research was designed to study the effects of beta-carotene enriched carrot juice on the level of inflammatory indicators and fasting blood glucose in type 2 diabetic patients. A double-blind randomized clinical trial was carried out on 44 patients with type 2 diabetes. Patients were classified into two groups based on their sex and BMI, receiving 200 ml of carrot juice fortified with 10 mg beta-carotene (Group A) and normal carrot juice (Group B). Both groups received 200 ml carrot juice daily for eight weeks. Serum C-reactive protein, interleukin-6 and beta-carotene and fasting blood glucose were assessed. Serum beta-carotene in group A increased significantly, compared to group B (p = 0.01). However, neither the reduction rate of CRP nor the reduction of serum IL-6 in group A was statistically significant, compared to those in group B (-0.8 ±2.1 and -0.6 ±2.4, respectively; p = 0.085). Furthermore, no change in fasting blood glucose was seen. In conclusion, daily consumption of200 ml of carrot juice fortified with 10 mg of beta-carotene for eight weeks improved serum beta-carotene levels in type 2 diabetic patients, with no significant effects on the serum level of glucose and inflammatory indicators.
KEY WORDS: Beta Carotene, CRP; Daucus Carota, IL-6; Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus
INTRODUCTION
Cardiovascular diseases are the main causes of death in patients with type 2 diabetes (Voutilainen et ah, 2006). This risk was previously attributed to hyperglycemia, abnormal lipid, pro-coagulative status and generally to common agents (traditional factors), while recent attentions are concentrated on the level of inflammatory agents (nontraditional factors) (Nabipour et al., 2008). The level of inflammatory factors such as C-reactive protein (CRP) and interleukin-6 (IL-6) is usually higher in diabetic patients (Ford et ah, 2005) which causes coronary artery stenosis and incidence of Myocardial infarction (MI). This may extent to the level; in which, the elevated serum CRP increases the risk of cardiovascular diseases and death rate up to 8.5 times in patients with diabetes type 2 (Deepa et al., 2006; Gomes & Nogueira, 2004; Mojiminiyi et ah, 2002). CRP is an acute-phase protein, which is mainly produced by hépatocytes and is a common indicator of inflammation. Fat tissues excrete IL-6, a factor that regulates the production of CRP from hepatocytes, and can...