PT  - JOURNAL ARTICLE
AU  - Francina R. Baldrick
AU  - J. Stuart Elborn
AU  - Jayne V. Woodside
AU  - Katherine Treacy
AU  - Judy M. Bradley
AU  - Chris C. Patterson
AU  - Bettina C. Schock
AU  - Madeleine Ennis
AU  - Ian S. Young
AU  - Michelle C. McKinley
TI  - Effect of fruit and vegetable intake on oxidative stress and inflammation in COPD: a randomised controlled trial
AID  - 10.1183/09031936.00086011
DP  - 2012 Jun 01
TA  - European Respiratory Journal
PG  - 1377--1384
VI  - 39
IP  - 6
4099  - http://erj.ersjournals.com/content/39/6/1377.short
4100  - http://erj.ersjournals.com/content/39/6/1377.full
SO  - Eur Respir J2012 Jun 01; 39
AB  - Epidemiological evidence supports a positive relationship between fruit and vegetable (FV) intake, lung function and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). Increasing FV intake may attenuate the oxidative stress and inflammation associated with COPD. An exploratory randomised controlled trial to examine the effect of increased consumption of FV on oxidative stress and inflammation in moderate-to-severe COPD was conducted. 81 symptomatically stable patients with a habitually low FV intake (two or fewer portions of FV per day) were randomised to the intervention group (five or more portions of FV per day) or the control group (two or fewer portions of FV per day). Each participant received self-selected weekly home deliveries of FV for 12 weeks. 75 participants completed the intervention. There was a significant between-group change in self-reported FV intake and biomarkers of FV intake (zeaxanthin (p=0.034) and β-cryptoxanthin (p=0.015)), indicating good compliance; post-intervention intakes in intervention and control groups were 6.1 and 1.9 portions of FV per day, respectively. There were no significant changes in biomarkers of airway inflammation (interleukin-8 and myeloperoxidase) and systemic inflammation (C-reactive protein) or airway and systemic oxidative stress (8-isoprostane). This exploratory study demonstrated that patients with moderate-to-severe COPD were able to comply with an intervention to increase FV intake; however, this had no significant effect on airway or systemic oxidative stress and inflammation.