The programme provides a scientific platform for researchers to connect, collaborate and promote the awareness of food ingredients throughout Asia.
The 2013 BASF grant programme targets China, Indonesia, Singapore and India. Consumers in these emerging countries are experiencing rapidly changing lifestyles, for example due to technology replacing labour and westernising diets. These changes are resulting in an increasing cardiovascular disease rate, causing a growing public health risk.
Plant sterols are one option to meet this growing health risk. These phytosterols can be found naturally in vegetable oils, legumes, nuts and grains. They lower LDL cholesterol levels and help to block the absorption of dietary cholesterol into the bloodstream.
An intake of 1-3g of plant sterols and sterol esters per day can substantially and consistently lower blood levels of total cholesterol by 6-10% and LDL-cholesterol by 8-15%.1
“While plant sterols have been used extensively in Europe and the US, awareness and research in Asia is still very limited,” said Tina Low, director, BASF Human Nutrition, Asia Pacific. “By focusing this year’s grant on Asian countries, BASF hopes to generate more research on the health benefits of plant sterols.”
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