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Before eating a high-fat meal, taking antioxidant vitamin C and vitamin E can offset some of the harmful effects to the arteries that often follow two to four hours later. This was researched and the results were shown in the Journal of the American Medical Association. Dr. Gary Plotnick and colleagues at the University of Maryland School of Medicine in Baltimore studied the effects or high-fat meals on the blood flow of 20 healthy hospital employees between the ages of 24 and 54 who had normal cholesterol levels. Then they compared how well the cells lining the artery in an arm were able to dilate before and after the meals. Impaired function of those cells is thought to precede hardening
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of the arteries and is associated with several other risk factors for heart disease. The researchers found that the high-fat meal temporarily impaired the function of the cells that line the arteries for two to four hours, possible through the accumulation of the lipoproteins in the arteries. There was no such effect after the low-fat meal. Pre-treatment with the vitamins eliminated the decrease in function following the high-fat meal but did not increase dilation after the low-fat meal. Finally, the researcher caution that the cholesterol buildup of a high-fat diet is unlikely to be modified simply by taking vitamins.
Muscular Development, p. 39, June 1999
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