Regulation of Postprandial Nitric Oxide Bioavailability and Vascular Function By Dairy Milk

Cardiovascular disease (CVD) is the leading cause of death in the United States. Short-term increases in blood sugar, or postprandial hyperglycemia (PPH), affect blood vessel function and increase the risk of CVD. Greater intakes of dairy foods have been associated with a lower risk of CVD, but whether these effects occur directly or indirectly by displacing foods in the diet that might increase CVD risk is unclear. The health benefits of dairy on heart health are at least partly attributed to its ability to limit PPH and resulting PPH-mediated responses leading to vascular dysfunction. This provides rationale to further investigate dairy as a dietary strategy to reduce PPH and risk for CVD. The objective of this study is to define the extent to which dairy milk, and its whey and casein protein fractions, protect against postprandial vascular dysfunction by reducing oxidative stress responses that limit nitric oxide bioavailability to the vascular endothelium in adults with prediabetes.