Illinois Tech trial: daily avocado and mango for 8 weeks improved arterial dilation in prediabetes

A team at the Illinois Institute of Technology reported that adding two fruits to the daily menu for eight weeks improved the response of the arm artery in adults with prediabetes, according to Futura Sciences. The trial included 82 participants and was published in the Journal of the American Heart Association. Fasting glucose changed little futura-sciences.comFutura Sciencesfutura-sciences.comOpen source ↗.

Trial design and measurement

All participants ate the same number of calories for eight weeks, but on two different menus. One group included two specific fruits every day: a whole avocado and a cup of fresh mango. The other group received alternatives low in fiber and fat.

To assess circulation, the researchers used a cuff of the kind used for measuring blood pressure. Blood flow was briefly interrupted, then the cuff was deflated. By ultrasound, the team measured how much the artery widened when blood flowed back. The article compares this to climbing stairs: the vessels dilate to deliver more blood and oxygen to working muscles, and the test shows this capacity to adapt.

Results for arteries and glucose

In the control group, arterial dilation declined from 5.6% to 4.4%. In the group eating avocado and mango it rose from 5.9% to 6.8%, and this was accompanied by better stability of blood pressure futura-sciences.comFutura Sciencesfutura-sciences.comOpen source ↗. Participants in the fruit group did not gain weight, and their fasting glucose did not rise. Fasting glucose evolved in a comparable way in both groups.

The article attributes the effect to the healthy fats and fiber of avocado and the vitamin C and antioxidants of mango. Professor Britt Burton-Freeman, who led the trial, said that small nutrient-rich additions could contribute to heart health without strict rules or a major change in diet.

The article notes that it remains to be established whether the effect lasts and whether it eventually translates into fewer heart attacks or strokes. The trial measured artery response and cardiometabolic risk factors over eight weeks.