Background: Reducing cardiovascular risk markers is an essential target in chronic kidney disease (CKD). Thus, this study aimed to evaluate the effect of royal jelly plus green propolis supplementation on cardiovascular disease (CVD) risk factors in patients with CKD undergoing hemodialysis (HD).
Methods: This randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial involved HD patients allocated to receive either royal jelly plus green propolis EPP-AF® (100 mg RJ + 500 mg GP) or placebo capsules daily for 2 months. Before and after the intervention period, the biochemical parameters, inflammatory cytokines, and uremic toxins were measured.
Results: A total of 38 HD patients completed the 2-month supplementation study, with 19 patients in each group. After 2 months, the treated group showed a significant reduction in plasma levels of IL-6 (0.78 to 0.63 pg/mL, p = 0.008) and total cholesterol (138.60 to 111.85 mg/dL, p = 0.03), whereas no changes were observed in the placebo group. Uremic toxins did not change after intervention.
Conclusion: Apitherapy with RJ + GP EPP-AF® extract significantly reduced plasma IL-6 and total cholesterol in HD patients. This supplementation shows promise as a non-pharmacological strategy to reduce cardiovascular risk markers in this population.
Keywords: cardiovascular risk markers; green propolis; hemodialysis; royal jelly; uremic toxins.