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Consumption of dark poultry meat protects women from heart disease
Last reviewed: 01.07.2025
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A nutrient found in dark poultry meat may protect women from coronary heart disease (CHD), according to a study from the New York University Langone Medical Center in the US.
Coronary heart disease is the leading killer of American men and women, accounting for one in five deaths. This pathological condition is characterized by absolute or relative impairment of myocardial blood supply due to damage to the coronary arteries of the heart caused by plaque deposition.
The current study assessed the effects of taurine, a natural nutrient found in dark turkey and chicken meat and some fish and shellfish, on heart disease. It analyzed data (a variety of health, personal, and lifestyle information) on 14,000 women ages 34 to 65 who were enrolled in the NYU Women's Health Study (NYUWHS) at a breast cancer screening center in New York City from 1985 to 1991.
Serum samples from 223 women with coronary heart disease who died between 1986 and 2006 were tested for taurine; the blood, it should be noted, was taken in 1985, before the onset of the disease. The results were compared with taurine levels in serum samples taken at the same time from 223 women who did not subsequently develop cardiovascular disease.
The results showed that high taurine intake was associated with a 60 percent lower risk of coronary heart disease in women with high cholesterol. No such link was found in women with normal cholesterol.
Little is known about taurine, the researchers say. Some animal studies have shown it may be helpful for heart disease, but this is the first time such a study has been conducted in humans. The researchers are now analyzing the NYUWHS data to assess taurine's effect on stroke rates.