Red Meat Metabolite Levels High in Acute Heart Failure Patients, Research Shows

19 Feb 2016 --- Patients with acute heart failure often have high levels of the metabolite trimethylamine N-oxide (TMAO) – of which red meat is a major dietary source – according to researchers from the University of Leicester, UK.

The team, led by Professor Toru Suzuki from the University of Leicester’s Department of Cardiovascular Sciences and PI within the Leicester Cardiovascular Biomedical Research Unit, measured circulating TMAO levels in approximately 1,000 patients admitted to University Hospitals of Leicester NHS Trust with acute heart failure.
 
Professor Suzuki said: “Patients with acute heart failure showed higher levels of the oxidised metabolite TMAO in those that died or had a repeat admission to hospital with heart failure within the first year.”
 
“Our study shows that higher levels of TMAO, a metabolite of carnitine derived from red meat, is associated with poorer outcomes associated with acute heart failure, one of the main diseases of the heart.”
 
Red meat, which has been reported to be associated with cardiovascular disease, is a source of L-carnitine which is broken down by gut bacteria to form TMAO. “This metabolic pathway provides a possible link between how red meat is associated with heart disease,” Professor Suzuki confirms.