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112,10

The impact of mycoprotein on

blood cholesterol levels: a pilot
study

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Carrie H.S. Ruxton

Nutrition Communications, Cupar, UK, and

Brian McMillan
Institute of Psychological Sciences, University of Leeds, Leeds, UK
Abstract
Purpose Research has shown that mycoprotein, a vegetable protein ingredient, can lower blood
cholesterol. This paper aims to test this in a consumer setting.
Design/methodology/approach In total, 21 healthy, free-living adults, who were not usually
mycoprotein consumers, were asked to eat mycoprotein, as Quorne products, daily for six weeks. Ten
control group participants followed their habitual diets. Fasting lipids, blood pressure, blood glucose,
weight, body mass index and waist circumference were measured at baseline and after six weeks.
Findings A significant reducing effect of the intervention on total cholesterol levels was found
among those participants with higher baseline blood cholesterol level. No significant differences were
seen between the intervention and control groups for the sample as a whole, although there were
compliance issues in the control group that may have reduced its validity. Good compliance with the
mycoprotein-rich diet also appeared to have a significant lowering effect on total blood cholesterol and
LDL cholesterol. The findings confirm that mycoprotein may be a useful food ingredient for helping to
manage blood cholesterol levels.
Research limitations/implications There was no randomisation or blinding, which may have
influenced compliance with a habitual diet in the control group. The sample size was small and so
further work in a larger population is warranted, particularly to determine optimal mycoprotein
intakes and likely mechanisms of action.
Originality/value The paper focuses on a trial that used commercially available products in a
free-living sample.
Keywords Organic foods, Vegetables, Proteins, Personal health, Blood
Paper type Research paper

British Food Journal

Vol. 112 No. 10, 2010
pp. 1092-1101
q Emerald Group Publishing Limited
0007-070X
DOI 10.1108/00070701011080221

Introduction
Raised serum cholesterol, particularly low density lipoprotein (LDL) cholesterol is a
risk factor for coronary heart disease (British Heart Foundation, 2009). Certain food
ingredients are believed to exert a reducing effect on serum cholesterol, e.g. stanols,
sterols, soya (American Dietetic Association, 2004), oats (Joint Health Claims Initiative,
2006) and mycoprotein (Denny et al., 2008).
Mycoprotein is a protein rich ingredient derived from the continuous fermentation
of the filamentous fungus Fusarium venenatum (Premier Foods, UK). It has been
commercially available as a foodstuff under the brand name of Quorne for more than
20 years. According to European rules on nutrient claims (European Parliament and
This study was funded by Premier Foods Ltd whose personnel played no role in the gathering of
data or analysis of results.

Council, 2007), mycoprotein is low in fat and saturated fat, high in fibre, zinc,
phosphorus, manganese, copper, chromium and selenium, and a source of riboflavin.
The quality of the protein found in mycoprotein (i.e. digestibility and spectrum of
amino acids) is superior to that found in meat according to the protein digestibility
corrected amino acid score a recognised standard of measurement (Edwards and
Cummings, 2009, in press). The fibre found in mycoprotein cell walls is beta glucan
(both 1,3 and 1,6) and chitin (Denny et al., 2008). The nutritional compositions of
mycoprotein and Quorn mince are compared in Table I. Quorn products contain up to
88 per cent mycoprotein by weight.
Interest in the cholesterol-lowering properties of mycoprotein arose in the 1980s and
1990s when researchers in Japan, the USA and the UK carried out controlled human
intervention trials. The earliest study was by Udall et al. (1984) who, in the course of
conducting a double blind, randomised, controlled tolerance study on 100 adults, noted
significant reductions in serum cholesterol when mycoprotein was consumed for 30
days. Later, a randomised controlled trial (RCT) of mycoprotein vs. meat was carried
out using 17 subjects with slightly raised baseline serum cholesterol levels
(5.2-6.2 mmol/l) (Turnbull et al., 1990). The amount of mycoprotein in the
intervention group (n 9) was 191 g per day, wet weight, i.e. as sold, distributed
over two meals which were eaten in a metabolic unit. The control diet was matched for
energy, protein, fat and saturated fat, but not fibre (which was 11.2 g per day more in
the intervention diet). After three weeks, total cholesterol in the intervention group had
decreased by 13 per cent, while LDL cholesterol reduced by 9 per cent (both p , 0:01).
In contrast, both total and LDL cholesterol in the control group rose.
Turnbull et al. (1992) built on this research by conducting an eight-week
intervention trial with 21 free-living subjects. This time both the mycoprotein (130 g
per day) and control protein were consumed as cookies. Once more the subjects had
slightly raised baseline cholesterol levels. The results showed that average cholesterol
levels in the intervention group (n 11) fell by 16 per cent, while those of the control
group fell by 8 per cent, giving an overall reduction in total cholesterol of 8 per cent in
the intervention group. LDL cholesterol also fell in both groups, giving an overall
reduction of 13 per cent in the intervention group. As daily fibre and total fat levels

Energy (kcal)
Protein (g)
Carbohydrate (g)
Of which sugars (g)
Fat (g)
Of which saturated (g)
Fibre (AOAC, g)
Salt equiv.
Zinc (mg)
Selenium (mcg)
Vitamin D (mcg)

Mycoprotein
(wet)

Quorn mince
(88 per cent mycoprotein
by weight)

86.0
11.5
1.7
0.8
2.9
0.6
6.0
0.1
9.0
20.0
1.6

94.0
14.5
4.5
0.6
2.0
0.5
5.3
0.3
7.8
17.4
1.4

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mycoprotein on
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Table I.
Nutritional composition
per 100 g

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were similar in the intervention and control groups, it is unlikely that dietary factors
explain the observed reductions in total and LDL cholesterol.
Similar effects on serum cholesterol, following mycoprotein consumption, have also
been reported by Nakamura et al. (1994), Ishikawa (1995), and Homma et al. (1995), with
the greatest effects seen in subjects with higher baseline cholesterol levels. For a full
description of these studies, see Denny et al. (2008). It has been speculated that the
mechanisms underpinning the impact of mycoprotein on serum cholesterol may relate
to its protein content, fatty acid profile or the high fibre content. This needs to be
confirmed in future research.
Since previous studies were carried out more than a decade ago and tended to use
experimental mycoprotein foods, the present study aimed to assess the impact of
commercially available mycoprotein products on serum cholesterol levels in free-living
participants.
Methodology
The trial was a six-week non-blinded, controlled intervention managed by a dietitian
(CR) and using participants recruited by a professional agency. Non-vegetarian adults
living in the South East of England who had opted into the agencys database were
contacted by telephone and asked if they would be interested in participating. Those
who expressed interest were invited to a meeting where they were given further details
about the trial. The 32 participants agreeing to take part were split into a control group
(habitual diet) and an intervention group (mycoprotein diet) according to their
expressed preferences. They were then sent an information sheet, a consent form and a
questionnaire about general health and allergies. All reported being in good health
with no known food allergies. None of the participants was a regular consumer of
mycoprotein.
Control group participants were asked to continue their usual diet throughout the
six week trial, but to avoid products that might have a lipid-lowering effect, e.g.
mycoprotein, stanols, sterols, cod liver oil. Intervention group participants were asked
to consume at least 88 g of wet weight mycoprotein per day (dry weight
equivalent 21 g) as Quorn products. This equates to one portion per day of mince
or pieces, plus a mycoprotein snack or lunch product. The participants were given a
booklet of suggested recipes and trained how to cook with mycoprotein products.
These were delivered free of charge on a weekly basis.
Prior to commencing the trial, all participants were visited by a nurse who
measured blood lipids (total cholesterol, LDL cholesterol, high density lipoprotein
[HDL] cholesterol, triglycerides), blood pressure, blood glucose, weight, height and
waist circumference. Measurements were taken in the fasting state and were repeated
after six weeks. Cholesterol analysis was performed using a hand-held blood analyser
(CardioChekw PA, Polymer Technology Systems, Inc., Indiana, USA). During the trial,
all participants measured their body weight on a weekly basis (digital scales were
provided) and the mycoprotein group kept a daily diary of compliance with the
recommended number of mycoprotein products. Participants were made aware that
they could drop out at any time and one person did so after two weeks. An honorarium
was paid at the beginning and at the end of the trial.
Statistical analyses were carried out using the Statistical Package for the Social
Sciences (SPSS 13.0).

Results
A total of 31 participants completed the trial. The average age of those in the
intervention condition was 36 years (range 17-58), while the average age in the control
condition was 46 years (35-74). One control participant, whose total cholesterol level fell
by 47 per cent during the trial, admitted cutting out butter despite being asked to
continue her habitual diet. The outlier was thus omitted from the analysis although
this had no impact on the statistical findings.
Description of the analyses
To test for an effect of the intervention, mixed ANOVAs were conducted on the data,
with the between subjects variable being CONDITION (intervention or control), and
the within subjects variable being TIME (i.e. measures taken at the beginning [time 1]
and end [time 2] of the study). For the readers information, a main effect of
CONDITION would demonstrate a significant difference between those in the
intervention condition and those in the control condition, averaged across the two time
points. A main effect of TIME would demonstrate a significant change in the measured
variables across time, averaged across the two conditions. The main effect of interest is
therefore the interaction effect (TIME CONDITION). A significant interaction effect
would demonstrate that the extent to which the measured variables changed over time
differed significantly between the intervention and control condition. In other words, a
significant main effect of TIME could be the result of taking part in the study per se,
irrespective of the intervention. A significant interaction effect on the other hand,
would demonstrate that the intervention had a significant impact on the degree or
direction of change in the measured variables across time. Post-hoc tests can then be
conducted to confirm if any differences across time are significant for each condition.
Analyses of the complete data set
A mixed ANOVA containing BMI, waist measurement, systolic blood pressure, and
diastolic blood pressure demonstrated a significant main effect of TIME
(F4; 26 6:99; p 0:001), but no main effect of CONDITION (F4; 26 2:23,
p 0:093) and no significant main TIME CONDITION interaction (F4; 26 1:13,
p 0:363). This demonstrates that being in the study per se influenced these measures
over time but that the intervention was not responsible for any changes observed.
Next, the blood test results (total cholesterol, LDL, HDL, triglycerides and blood
glucose) were entered into a mixed ANOVA. This demonstrated a main effect of TIME
(F5; 25 2:68, p 0:045), but no significant main effect of CONDITION
(F5; 25 1:05, p 0:410), and no significant main TIME CONDITION
interaction effect (F5; 25 1:39, p 0:263). This again demonstrates that being in
the study per se influenced these measures over time, but that the intervention was not
responsible for any changes observed.
Analyses of data from participants with higher baseline cholesterol
Since previous intervention trials on mycoprotein found greater cholesterol reductions
in those with a higher baseline cholesterol level, participants were divided at the
median into higher total cholesterol (. 4.19 mmol/L; N 15) and lower total
cholesterol (, 4.19 mmol/L; n 16) conditions. The higher cholesterol group
included seven participants with a cholesterol level . 5 mmol/L, which is the

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clinical cut-off for raised cholesterol in the UK (National Institute of Clinical Excellence
(NICE), 2008).
Examining only those participants with a higher cholesterol (N 15), a mixed
ANOVA containing BMI, waist measurement, systolic blood pressure, and diastolic
blood pressure was conducted. This failed to demonstrate a significant main effect of
TIME (F4; 10 3:06; p 0:069), or of CONDITION (F4; 10 1:24; p 0:354) and
there was also no significant main TIME CONDITION interaction
(F4; 10 0:43; p 0:782). This demonstrates that, for the higher cholesterol
participants, neither being in the study per se nor the condition to which they were
assigned had any influence on the measured variables over time.
Next, the blood test results of the higher cholesterol participants (total cholesterol,
LDL, HDL, triglycerides and blood glucose) were entered into a mixed ANOVA. This
demonstrated a main effect of TIME (F5; 9 7:84; p 0:004), but no significant
main effect of CONDITION (F5; 9 0:84; p 0:554). There was however a
significant main TIME CONDITION interaction (F5; 9 4:67; p 0:022). This
demonstrates that being in the study per se influenced these measures over time, but
also that the extent of change in the measured variables across time was significantly
influenced by the intervention. Table II shows the means and standard deviations of
the blood test results by condition across time, along with results of univariate F-tests
of the TIME CONDITION interaction for each variable.
It can be seen from Table II that there was also a significant interaction effect of
CONDITION TIME for total cholesterol and glucose.
These interaction effects are more easily understood in graphical form. Figure 1
shows that while total cholesterol decreased significantly overall across time (i.e. there
was a significant effect of TIME on total cholesterol (F1; 13 22:32; p 0:001), the
extent to which total cholesterol decreased was significantly greater for those in the
Quorn condition (i.e. there was a significant TIME CONDITION interaction
(F1; 13 7:45; p 0:017). Post-hoc comparisons revealed that the decrease in
cholesterol was significant for those in the Quorn condition (p , 0:001) but not for
those in the control condition (p . 0:05). Therefore, for those with initially higher
cholesterol levels, being in the Quorn condition resulted in a significant reduction in
total cholesterol across time.
Figure 2 shows that if glucose levels are considered independently of condition,
there was no significant effect of TIME (F1; 13 0:20; p 0:66). However, glucose
levels of those in the Quorn condition decreased with time, whereas glucose levels of

Blood test (mmol/L)

Table II.
Blood test results by time
and experimental
condition for participants
with higher baseline
blood cholesterol

Total cholesterol
LDL
HDL
Triglycerides
Glucose
Note: *p , 0.05

Quorn condition (n 10)

Time 1
Time 2
Mean
SD
Mean
SD
5.28
3.53
1.21
1.20
5.74

0.84
0.84
0.33
0.56
1.20

3.40
2.50
1.08
0.95
5.21

0.70
0.73
0.30
0.32
1.54

Control condition (n 5)
Time 1
Time 2
Mean
SD
Mean
SD
4.73
2.87
1.54
0.76
5.84

0.44
0.22
0.46
0.23
2.11

4.38
2.51
1.34
1.16
6.64

0.37
0.85
0.44
0.54
3.24

F
7.45 *
2.44
0.39
4.38
4.93 *

The impact of
mycoprotein on
cholestoral levels
1097

Figure 1.
Change in total cholesterol
between baseline and six
weeks in participants with
higher baseline cholesterol
levels

Figure 2.
Change in blood glucose
between baseline and six
weeks in participants with
higher baseline cholesterol
levels

those in the control condition increased with time, and this CONDITION TIME
interaction was significant (F1; 13 4:926; p 0:045). Despite this, post hoc tests
revealed that neither the reduction in glucose among those in the Quorn condition, nor
the increase in glucose among those the control condition was significant (p . 0:05).
Therefore it is not possible to conclude that being in the Quorn condition helped to
lower blood glucose levels between the beginning and end of the study.
Analyses of the lower cholesterol participant data
Examining only those participants with a lower baseline total cholesterol (n 16), a
mixed ANOVA containing BMI, waist measurement, systolic blood pressure, and
diastolic blood pressure was conducted. This demonstrated a significant main effect of
TIME (F(4,11) 5.76, p 0.009), but not of CONDITION (F4; 11 1:12; p 0:391).

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There was also no significant main TIME CONDITION interaction

(F4; 11 1:51; p 0:266). This demonstrates that, for the lower cholesterol
participants, being in the study per se had an effect on the measured variables over
time, but that the intervention itself did not have a significant effect.
Next, the blood test results of the lower cholesterol participants (total cholesterol,
LDL, HDL, triglycerides and blood glucose) were entered into a mixed ANOVA. There
was no significant main effect of TIME (F5; 10 0:66; p 0:662), CONDITION
(F5; 10 0:36; p 0:865), nor was there a significant main TIME CONDITION
interaction (F5; 10 1:26; p 0:354). This demonstrates that, for the lower
cholesterol participants, neither being in the study per se nor the condition to which
they were assigned had any influence on the measured variables over time.
Analyses of the intervention group (higher versus lower compliance)
Compliance with the intervention diet may have influenced the physical and
biochemical response during the trial. We defined higher compliance as a minimum
intake of 80 g of mycoprotein products per day (i.e. 80 per cent of the 100 g target). In
contrast, lower compliance was defined as less than 80 g of products per day.
Considering the higher compliance group (n 12), a repeated measures ANOVA
containing BMI, waist circumference, systolic blood pressure and diastolic blood pressure
revealed a marginally significant main effect of time (F(4,8) 3.77, p 0.052) and
univariate F-tests revealed a significant effect of time on waist circumference (p 0:006).
Examination of the means for the higher compliance group revealed that waist
circumference decreased significantly between baseline and six weeks (see Table III).
Again considering just the higher compliance group, a repeated measures ANOVA
containing total cholesterol, LDL, HDL, triglycerides and glucose revealed a no
significant main effect of time (F5; 7 2:78; p 0:107) although univariate F-tests
revealed a significant effect of time on total cholesterol (p 0:001) and LDL (p 0:011).
Examination of the means for the higher compliance group revealed that total cholesterol
and LDL decreased significantly between baseline and six weeks (see Table III).
Considering the lower compliance group (n 9), a repeated measures ANOVA
containing BMI, waist circumference, systolic blood pressure and diastolic blood

Measure
BMI
Waist (cm)
Blood pressure (mmHg)

Table III.
Impact of good and poor
compliance with the
intervention diet

Blood cholesterol (mmol/L)

Total
LDL
HDL
Triglycerides (mmol/L)
Fasting blood glucose (mmol/L)
Notes: *p , 0.05; * *p , 0.01

Good compliance (n 12)

Time 1
Time 2
Mean (SD)
Mean (SD)

Poor compliance (n 9)
Time 1
Time 2
Mean (SD)
Mean (SD)

26.19
90.83
126.67
78.50

26.04
88.46 * *
124.75
77.42

25.16
86.39
122.44
74.33

24.93
81.78 *
121.89
74.22

4.38
2.88
1.02
1.12
5.46

3.56 * *
2.29 *
0.93
0.91
5.38

4.31
2.60
1.22
1.12
5.04

4.26
2.57
1.49
1.23
4.68 *

pressure revealed no significant main effect of time (F4; 5 2:67; p 0:156)

although univariate F-tests revealed a significant effect of time on waist circumference
(p 0:037). Examination of the means for the lower compliance group revealed that
waist circumference decreased significantly between baseline and six weeks (see
Table III).
Again considering just the lower compliance group, a repeated measures ANOVA
containing total cholesterol, LDL, HDL, triglycerides and glucose revealed no
significant main effect of time (F5; 4 1:65; p 0:323) although univariate F-tests
revealed a significant effect of time on glucose (p 0:011) and LDL (p 0:011).
Examination of the means for the higher compliance group revealed that glucose
decreased significantly between baseline and six weeks (see Table III).
Discussion
Consumers are increasingly interested in functional foods (Mellentin, 2007) and there
are now several products and ingredients on the market claiming to help manage
cholesterol levels. The regulatory environment for such claims is in a state of flux due
to the introduction of the EU regulation on nutrition and health claims on foods in 2007
(European Parliament and Council, 2007). Under these rules, the evidence supporting
cholesterol-lowering claims needs to be assessed by the European Food Safety
Authority before the claims are allowed to continue on pack after 2010. This process
highlights the importance of carrying out human intervention trials on foods and
ingredients likely to merit cholesterol lowering claims.
With this in mind, the present trial was undertaken as a pilot for a RCT on
mycoprotein beginning in 2009. The advantages of a free-living trial are that people
can exhibit normal dietary and lifestyle behaviour. The disadvantages are the lack of
investigator control over compliance. In the present trial, one member of the control
group admitted cutting out a major source of saturated fat during the trial, despite
being asked to continue her habitual diet. This may have been prompted, by the
subjects, seeing her baseline cholesterol result, and changing her diet in response. As it
cannot be ruled out that other members of the control group made similar dietary
changes, it is likely that the control group was flawed (four out of ten control
participants reduced their cholesterol levels by more than 20 per cent during the trial
which may not have been a chance finding). It is also noted that the sample size in the
present pilot was small, no placebo diet was offered, and that the control and
intervention subjects were not matched. These deficiencies will be overcome in the
planned RCT by the use of randomisation, subject blinding and a placebo diet.
Despite the short-comings of the present trials methodology, the results for the
intervention group were surprisingly consistent with an earlier RCT. When the data
relating to those with higher baseline cholesterol were considered separately, the total
cholesterol level of those in the Quorn condition reduced significantly by 35.6 per cent
between baseline and six weeks, compared with the non-significant reduction of just
7.4 per cent in the control condition. It is interesting to note that 70 per cent of men and
75 per cent of women in the UK have total cholesterol levels over 4.5 mmol/L, which is
just above the cut-off selected in the present trial for the higher cholesterol group, i.e.
4.19 mmol/L (Ruston et al., 2004). Thus, consuming mycoprotein could be helpful to a
large section of the population. The modest weight loss of 1 kg in the higher cholesterol
group may have contributed to the cholesterol reduction. Another potential factor is the

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beta glucan fibre found in mycoprotein. Further research is needed to confirm why
mycoprotein may lower blood cholesterol.
When considering those with a higher baseline cholesterol, the significant
interaction between condition and time for blood glucose levels was at first suggestive
that the intervention may have significantly lowered blood glucose between baseline
and six weeks. A closer examination of the data however, revealed that this interaction
effect was due to the direction of the change in blood glucose across time, rather than
the extent of the reduction in blood glucose. Although blood glucose did fall between
baseline and six weeks for those in the intervention group, this reduction was not
significant. It would be interesting to discover if this effect reaches significance in
studies with a larger sample size.
When those participants in the Quorn condition were split by compliance, those who
managed to consume 80 per cent or more of the recommended mycoprotein intake had
significant reductions in waist circumference, total cholesterol and LDL cholesterol
between baseline and six weeks. The average reductions in total and LDL cholesterol
were around 20 per cent in the higher compliance group versus a 1 per cent reduction in
those who complied less. Those in the lower compliance group also had a significant
reduction in waist circumference between baseline and six weeks. In addition, those in
the lower compliance group had a significant reduction in glucose between baseline
and six weeks. It is unclear as to why this may have occurred.
In conclusion, the results of this trial confirm findings from earlier controlled trials
that a diet rich in mycoprotein may help lower plasma cholesterol levels. Significant
benefits were seen in participants who had a higher cholesterol level at baseline and
who complied well with the mycoprotein-rich diet. Given the body of research that now
exists for the impact of mycoprotein on blood cholesterol, much of which is
well-controlled, future research should focus on determining optimal intakes of
mycoprotein and likely mechanisms of action.
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About the authors
Carrie H.S. Ruxton is a freelance dietitian and registered public health nutritionist based at
Nutrition Communications, Cupar, Fife, UK. Carrie H.S. Ruxton is the corresponding author and
can be contacted at: carrie@nutrition-communications.com
Brian McMillan is a chartered scientist and chartered psychologist based at the Institute of
Psychological Sciences, University of Leeds, Leeds, UK.

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The impact of
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cholestoral levels
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