IntroductionThe increase in lifestyle-related diseases following the diversification of eating habits, including dyslipidemia, cardiovascular diseases, and obesity has become a social problem in developed countries. In particular, cardiovascular disease, which causes arteriosclerosis, is one of the leading causes of death in Japan 1 . Therefore, the prevention or amelioration of dyslipidemias, such as hypercholesterolemia, would help to reduce the risk of cardiovascular diseases.There is growing interest in hypocholesterolemic effect of various food components, especially polyphenols, such as tea catechin 2 . Polyphenols are present in a wide range of food products derived from plants such as vegetables, fruits, and beans. Procyanidins are composed of catechin and epicatechin oligomers and exert many health benefits, such as cancer prevention, cardiovascular protection, and diabetes prevention 3 . In a recent study, absorption of low molecular weight procyanidins, including dimers, was observed in rats 4 , while the bioavailability of high molecular