Bioactive Plant Foods: Effects on Functional Bioavailability and Genomic Stability

Inclusion Criteria: healthy control group (n=20)

1. Age: over 50 years old

2. Female subjects must be post-menopausal

3. BMI: 18.5 - 30, waist/hip ratio < 0.9 for men, < 0.85 for women

4. TG<150 mg/dL (1.7 mmol/L) and no medication for TG

5. Total cholesterol < 200 mg /dL (5.18 mmol/L) and no medication for cholesterol

6. Blood pressure: SBP < 130 mmHg and DBP < 85 mmHg and no hypertensive medication

7. Plasma glucose: fasting blood glucose < 100 mg/dL (5.6 mmol/L) and no diabetes medication

Inclusion Criteria: Metabolic syndrome (n=40)

1. Age: over 50 years old

2. BMI: > 30 or waist/hip ratio > 0.9 for men, > 0.85 for women

3. Plus any two of the following four factors:

- TG: 150-400 mg/dL (1.7 - 4.52 mmol/L) and/or medication for TG

- HDL cholesterol: <40 mg /dL (1.03 mmol/L) for men, <50 mg/dL (1.29 mmol/L) for women and/or medication for cholesterol

- Blood pressure: SBP, 130-160 mmHg and/or DBP 85-95 mmHg and/or antihypertensive medication

- Plasma glucose: fasting blood glucose 100-125 mg/dL (5.55- 6.94 mmol/L) and no diabetes medication

Exclusion Criteria:

1. Study participants will be screened for normal hematologic parameters, normal serum albumin, normal liver function, normal kidney function, absence of fat malabsorption.

2. Subjects with a history of kidney stones, active small bowel disease or resection, atrophic gastritis, insulin-requiring diabetes, alcoholism, pancreatic disease, or bleeding disorders will be excluded from the study.

3. Exogenous hormone users will be excluded from the study.

4. Moreover, subjects will be non-smokers and will not have taken vitamin or carotenoid supplements for at least 6 weeks prior to the study and throughout the study for both healthy subjects and subjects with metabolic syndrome.