Effect of Psyllium Fiber Supplementation on C-Reactive Protein: The Trial to Reduce Inflammatory Markers (TRIM)

Study answer

What this study found

Psyllium supplementation did not significantly lower CRP or other inflammatory markers over 3 months compared with no supplementation. In intent-to-treat analyses, change in CRP was 0.98 mg/L in the 14 g/day group and -0.96 mg/L in the 7 g/day group, with no significant between-group differences versus control for CRP, fibrinogen, or white blood cell count. Among protocol completers, the 14 g/day group showed a small fibrinogen decrease (-6.30 mg/dL) and this was significant after adjustment for BMI (P = .03), but the authors judged the effect not clinically meaningful. No significant…

Study & population

Randomized interventional study in overweight or obese adults with elevated C-reactive protein and no history of heart disease, conducted at the Medical University of South Carolina in Charleston, United States.

Intervention

Participants received oral psyllium fiber powder for 3 months.

Key limitation

The trial was short, with only 3 months of follow-up, and the active-arm analysis sets were smaller than the randomized numbers.

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Original abstract