A new study suggests that adding mango and avocado to a daily diet may improve a key measure of blood vessel function in adults with prediabetes.
The research was funded through an unrestricted grant from the National Mango Board and the Hass Avocado Board. According to the authors, the funders had no role in study design, data collection or interpretation.
The study, published in the Journal of the American Heart Association, enrolled 82 adults ages 25 to 60 with overweight or obesity and prediabetes. Participants followed one of two calorie-controlled diets for eight weeks. One group added one medium Hass avocado and one cup of fresh mango daily. The control group consumed calorie-matched carbohydrate-based foods instead.
All meals provided 75% of participants’ daily calories and were prepared by the research team, helping ensure consistency and compliance.
The primary outcome was flow-mediated dilation, or FMD, a noninvasive measure of endothelial function. Endothelial function reflects how well blood vessels relax and expand in response to increased blood flow. Impaired endothelial function is considered an early marker of cardiovascular risk.
After eight weeks, the avocado-mango group saw FMD rise to 6.7%, while the control group declined to 4.6%. The difference suggests improved vascular responsiveness among those adding the fruit combination.
Diastolic blood pressure also improved modestly, particularly among men. Men in the control group experienced an average increase of about 5 mmHg in central blood pressure, while men in the avocado-mango group saw a reduction of about 1.9 mmHg.
Importantly, body weight and total calorie intake did not change. The improvements occurred without weight loss.
However, several commonly tracked cardiometabolic markers did not significantly change. Researchers reported no meaningful differences in cholesterol, blood sugar or inflammation markers between groups.
Fiber, vitamin C and monounsaturated fat intake increased in the avocado-mango group, nutrients already associated with cardiovascular health.
The study’s strengths include its controlled feeding design and calorie matching. Limitations include the short duration and the narrow study population. Because the trial lasted only eight weeks and included adults with prediabetes, the findings may not apply to other groups or translate directly into long-term cardiovascular outcomes.
The results suggest that adding nutrient-dense whole fruits may support vascular function in certain at-risk adults. Whether those improvements meaningfully reduce heart disease risk over time remains an open question.