1. Introduction
metabolic endotoxemia, milk beverage, MEB, full-fat milk heightens, MetS, cardiometabolic disorders, metabolic syndrome, MetS-related
METABOLIC SYNDROME, SYNDROME, COMPLICATIONS, ADVERSE EFFECTS
Full-fat dairy milk may protect against cardiometabolic disorders, due to the milk fat globule membrane (MFGM), through anti-inflammatory and gut-health-promoting activities. We hypothesized that a MFGM-enriched milk beverage (MEB) would alleviate metabolic endotoxemia in metabolic syndrome (MetS) persons by improving gut barrier function and glucose tolerance. In a randomized crossover trial, MetS persons consumed for two-week period a controlled diet with MEB (2.3 g/d milk phospholipids) or a comparator beverage (COMP) formulated with soy phospholipid and palm/coconut oil. They then provided fasting blood and completed a high-fat/high-carbohydrate test meal challenge for evaluating postprandial metabolism and intestinal permeability. Participants had no adverse effects and achieved high compliance, and there were no between-trial differences in dietary intakes. Compared with COMP, fasting endotoxin, glucose, incretins, and triglyceride were unaffected by MEB. The meal challenge increased postprandial endotoxin, triglyceride, and incretins, but were unaffected by MEB. Insulin sensitivity; fecal calprotectin, myeloperoxidase, and short-chain fatty acids; and small intestinal and colonic permeability were also unaffected by MEB. This short-term study demonstrates that controlled administration of MEB in MetS persons does not affect gut barrier function, glucose tolerance, and other cardiometabolic health biomarkers, which contradicts observational evidence that full-fat milk heightens cardiometabolic risk. Registered at ClinicalTrials.gov (NCT03860584).Metabolic syndrome (MetS) afflicts ≈35% of American adults, and its prevalence increases to ≈50% among those >60 years of age [Consistent with increased circulating endotoxin concentrations in MetS persons [Increased consumption of bovine dairy foods could be an effective nutrition strategy to alleviate MetS-related complications. Evidence from retrospective and prospective observational studies suggests a 14–17% lower risk of developing MetS among those with higher intakes of dairy [MFGM has received extensive attention as a component in infant formula [