February, 2000: Finland
An extract from the pine tree has been found to lower cholesterol levels in the human body. Most pines belong to Pinus, the largest genus of conifers, cone-bearing trees or shrubs. Pines are gymnosperms, which have exposed seeds that are produced on the surface of sporophylls, as opposed to angiosperms, whose seeds are enclosed within a fruit (see figure 22.1, Stern, Introductory Plant Biology, 8th ed.).
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A cholesterol molecule.
All body cells contain cholesterol (C27H45OH), a chemical that is necessary for proper body function. Cholesterol acts as a precursor to bile acids and steroid hormones, and is a component of cell membranes. The cholesterol in our bodies comes from two sources: that consumed as part of our diets and that manufactured by the liver, which produces approximately 1,000 milligrams (mg) per day. Cholesterol is considered a lipid, or fat, and is therefore insoluble in water. Because a high percentage of our blood is water, cholesterol must be carried from cell to cell by lipoproteins. HDL, high-density lipoprotein, is the "good" cholesterol, while LDL, low-density lipoprotein, is the "bad" cholesterol and the one to keep low. An abundance of LDL can cause buildup within artery walls, resulting in a medical condition known as atherosclerosis. The American Heart Association recommends that an individual's daily cholesterol intake not exceed 300 mg per day. (An egg, for example, contains about 275 mg.)
Since the 1950s, it has been known that plant stanol esters added to patients' diets can help lower cholesterol levels. The stanol esters block the absorption of low-density lipoproteins, thereby decreasing the amount of total cholesterol and LDL cholesterol in the blood. Plant stanol esters can be found in vegetable oils, corn, beans, and wood. A Finnish pharmaceutical company, Raisio, has developed a bread spread that uses the esters found in wood pulp extracted from pine trees. Called Benecol, a combination of the words "beneficial" and "cholesterol," the margarine contains 1 gram of stanol esters per 8-gram serving. Benecol has been consumed in Finland since 1995, and studies have shown that consuming just three pats a day can lower cholesterol levels 10% to 20% in about eight weeks.
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Benecol in a supermarket. (Photo © 1999 Erica Kipp.)
Raisio Pharmaceuticals now has a worldwide license agreement with McNeil Consumer Healthcare, a division of Johnson & Johnson, to market Benecol. Benecol is about four times as expensive as other bread spreads and is being promoted as a dietary supplement. Because herbal products and neutraceuticals (a term derived from "nutrition" and "pharmaceuticals") are increasing in popularity, McNeil Consumer Healthcare does not feel the cost of Benecol will be an issue with consumers. However, the FDA has threatened action against McNeil Consumer Healthcare citing the Dietary Supplement Health and Education Act of 1994 (DSHEA), which discourages companies from marketing dietary supplements as conventional food or conventional food as dietary supplements. McNeil continues to have discussions with the FDA, but we can all expect cream cheese and salad dressing containing plant stanol esters to hit supermarket shelves in the near future.
References, Websites, and Further Reading
Information about cholesterol, HDL, and LDL
Stern, Introductory Plant Biology, 8th Edition
Chapter 2: The Nature of Life
Fats and lipids, p. 23
Chapter 22: Introduction to Seed Plants: Gymnosperms
Gymnosperms, pp. 398-414
Chapter 23: Flowering Plants
Angiosperms, pp. 417-30
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