Obesity (Poster Session)

(P20-050-25) The Effect of Ingesting Blueberry Powder on Body Composition and Hemoglobin A1C in Overweight and Obese Older Males and Postmenopausal Women

Sunday, June 1, 2025

12:45 PM - 1:45 PM ET

Location: Poster Board D-37

Presenting Author(s)

NS

Nadia Nemeh Saad, MS, RDN, CDE

PhD candidate
Loma Linda University
Claremont, California, United States

Co-Author(s)

Joan Sabate, MD Dr.PH

Professor of Nutrition
Loma Linda University School of Public Health
Loma Linda, California, United States
CH

Celine Heskey, DrPH, MS, RD

Assistant Professor
Loma Linda University
Loma Linda, California, United States
SR

Sujatha Rajaram, PhD

Loma Linda University
Loma Linda, California, United States

Disclosure(s):

Nadia NEMEH Saad, MS, RDN, CDE: No relevant financial relationship(s) with ineligible companies to disclose.

Objectives: To examine the effect of habitual blueberry intake on body composition and HbA1c in a sample of overweight and obese older men and postmenopausal women to assess potential benefits to those at risk of diabetes.

Methods: This is an ancillary project of the Blueberry and Immunity Trial, a 12-week, triple-blinded, randomized controlled trial conducted to explore the immune health effects of blueberries. The study explored the effects of consuming 50 g/d of freeze-dried blueberry powder (2 cups/d fresh blueberry equivalent), compared to a control powder (placebo) matched in energy and carbohydrate to the intervention, but without the fiber and phytochemicals. In this ancillary study, we examined the effects of the blueberry powder on body composition parameters, including weight (WT), Body Mass Index (BMI), Body Fat Mass (BFM), Body Fat Mass-Trunk (BFMT), Lean Body Mass (LBM), Skeletal Muscle Mass (SMM) and HbA1c in 52 participants (18 males, 32 females, mean age 61.3 years). For body composition parameters and HbA1c, repeated measures ANOVA was performed to determine the effect of the intervention on outcomes of interest.

Results: The between group analyses indicated no significant results for any of the body composition parameters as well as for the HbA1c. However, the within group differences over time indicated no significant results for all, except marginal significance noted for BFMT and SMM with p-values of (0.046, 0.05) respectively between week 4 and week 12 only in the control group.

Conclusions: Consumption of freeze-dried blueberries (50 g/d) resulted in maintenance of body composition parameters and no change in HbA1c values after 3 months’ intervention. However, consuming a control with no fiber content in an equivalent isocaloric diet caused marginally significant increase in visceral adiposity and SMM.

Funding Sources: The High Bush Blueberry Council