Impact of a High Saturated Fat Diet on Fasted Systemic and White Adipose Tissue Inflammatory Responses

Impact of Short-term Overfeeding With a Saturated Fat-rich Diet on Fasted Systemic and White Adipose Tissue Inflammatory Responses

This study will investigate the effect of a 7-day westernised high-fat (65% of kilocalories), high-calorie (150% of requirements) diet on markers of inflammation in the blood and white adipose tissue. Participants will firstly complete a 3-day weight maintenance phase (Days 1-3) before completing a 7-day high fat diet intervention (Days 4-10). On days 4 and 11 participants will complete a laboratory visit where anthropometric measurements, blood and adipose samples will be collected.

The investigators hypothesise that consuming a high-fat, high-calorie diet for 7 days will alter the inflammatory responses in white adipose tissue and will induce metabolic endotoxaemia / systemic inflammation.

Inclusion criteria:

• 18-40 years
• BMI = 21.0-29.9 kg/m2
• Male or female
• Physically active (> 3 x 30 min moderate exercise per week)
• Healthy
• No cardiometabolic (e.g. heart disease, high blood pressure, type 2 diabetes) or inflammatory illness

Exclusion criteria:

• Inactive (< 3 x 30 min moderate exercise per week)
• Smoker
• Women who are pregnant or lactating
• Medication/supplements known to interfere with study outcomes or prescribed antibiotics within the last 3 months
• Unstable weight history (≥3kg loss or gain in the previous 3 months)
• An allergy to lidocaine
• Food allergies (e.g. gluten, dairy) and intolerances (e.g. lactose) which could impede compliance to the diet
• Vegetarian/ vegan (as the high-fat diet is based on animal fats)
• Consumption of probiotics yogurts during or within the four weeks prior to the start of the study (e.g. Actimel, Activia, Yakult, Yeo Valley)
• Alcohol consumption >28 units per week for a man (i.e. not more than 14 pints of beer or 28 small glasses of wine) or >21 units per week for a woman (i.e. more than 10 and a half pints of beer or 21 small glasses of wine)
• Any other unusual medical history or diet and lifestyle habits or practices that would preclude volunteers from participating in a dietary intervention or metabolic study
• Restrained eaters (determined by Three Factor Eating Questionnaire)