Overview
- A new analysis of more than 30,000 adults in the U.K. and U.S. used diet data and urine biomarkers to estimate flavanol intake and found that fewer than one in four people who meet five portions of fruit and veg a day reach the about 500 mg/day level linked to heart benefits.
- Flavanols are plant compounds that improve blood flow and reduce inflammation, and prior randomized evidence from the COSMOS trial associated roughly 500 mg daily with about a 27% lower risk of dying from cardiovascular disease.
- The study names high‑flavanol foods that could help raise intake, including plums, cranberries, blackberries, green tea, broad (fava) beans, cherries, apples with skin, strawberries, blueberries, and pinto beans.
- Authors and outside experts warn that flavanol amounts vary by variety, ripeness, processing and region, and that individual absorption depends on gut microbes, so intake estimates do not yet prove cause and effect for outcomes.
- Researchers say the findings open the door to more specific dietary guidance but stress the need for standardized measurement, more outcome trials, and attention to food access and equity before changing public health recommendations.