Intake of specific flavonoid classes and coronary heart disease--a case-control study in Greece

Dietary intake of flavonoids has been reported to protect against coronary heart disease (CHD) risk, but associations of specific classes of flavonoids with CHD have not been adequately studied.

Hospital-based case-control study relying on interviewer administered questionnaires.

Cardiology Department of the University of Athens Medical School in the Hippokrateion General Hospital (1990-1991).

Cases were 329 patients with electrocardiographically confirmed first coronary infarct or a first positive coronary arteriogram, or both (participation fraction 93%). Controls were 570 patients admitted to the same hospital for minor conditions unrelated to nutrition (participation fraction 95%). All cases and controls were interviewed in the hospital wards by experienced interviewers, and a 110-item food frequency questionnaire was administered.

There was statistically significant evidence (P approximately 0.03) for an inverse association between intake of flavan-3-ols and CHD risk, an increase of about 21 mg per day corresponding to a 24% decrease in CHD risk. The inverse association between flavan-3-ols and CHD risk was largely accounted for by the intake of wine and to a lesser extent tea. For none of the other flavonoid classes was there statistically significant evidence of an association.

Flavan-3-ols, which are largely found in wine and tea, are inversely associated with, and may be protective against, coronary heart disease.