Alpha-Linolenic Acid: Is It Essential to Cardiovascular Health?

There is a large body of scientific evidence that has been confirmed in randomized controlled trials indicating a cardioprotective effect for omega-3 fatty acids from fish. For alpha-linolenic acid (ALA), which is the omega-3 fatty acid from plants, the relation to cardiovascular health is less clear. We reviewed the recent literature on dietary ALA intake, ALA tissue concentrations, and cardiovascular health in humans. Short-term trials (6–12 weeks) in generally healthy participants mostly showed no or inconsistent effects of ALA intake (1.2–3.6 g/d) on blood lipids, low-density lipoprotein oxidation, lipoprotein(a), and apolipoproteins A-I and B. Studies of ALA in relation to inflammatory markers and glucose metabolism yielded conflicting results. With regard to clinical cardiovascular outcomes, there is observational evidence for a protective effect against nonfatal myocardial infarction. However, no protective associations were observed between ALA status and risk of heart failure, atrial fibrillation, and sudden death. Findings from long-term trials of ALA supplementation are awaited to answer the question whether food-based or higher doses of ALA could be important for cardiovascular health in cardiac patients and the general population

Dietary intake of fish, omega-3, omega-6 polyunsaturated fatty acids and vitamin D and the prevalence of psychotic-like symptoms in a cohort of 33 000 women from the general population

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Low intake of fish, polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFA) and vitamin D deficiency has been suggested to play a role in the development of schizophrenia. Our aim was to evaluate the association between the intake of different fish species, PUFA and vitamin D and the prevalence of psychotic-like symptoms in a population-based study among Swedish women.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>Dietary intake was estimated using a food frequency questionnaire among 33 623 women aged 30-49 years at enrolment (1991/92). Information on psychotic-like symptoms was derived from a follow-up questionnaire in the years 2002/03. Participants were classified into three predefined levels: low, middle and high frequency of symptoms. The association between diet and psychotic-like symptoms was summarized in terms of relative risks (RR) and corresponding 95% confidence intervals and was evaluated by energy-adjusted multinomial logistic regression.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>18 411 women were classified as having a low level of psychotic-like symptoms, 14 395 as middle and 817 as having a high level. The risk of high level symptoms was 53% (95% CI, 30-69%) lower among women who ate fish 3-4 times per week compared to women who never ate fish. The risk was also lower for women with a high intake of omega-3 and omega-6 PUFA compared to women with a lower intake of these fatty acids. The effect was most pronounced for omega-6 PUFAs. The RR comparing the highest to the lowest quartile of omega-6 PUFAs intake was 0.78 (95% CI, 0.64-0.97). The associations were J-shaped with the strongest reduced risk for an intermediate intake of fish or PUFA. For fatty fish (herring/mackerel, salmon-type fish), the strongest inverse association was found for an intermediate intake (RR: 0.81, 95% CI, 0.66-0.98), whereas a high intake of fatty fish was associated with an increased risk of psychotic-like symptoms (RR: 1.90, 95% CI, 1.34-2.70). Women in the highest compared with the lowest quartile of vitamin D consumption experienced a 37% (95% CI, 22-50%) lower risk of psychotic-like symptoms.</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>Our findings raise a possibility that adult women with a high intake of fish, omega-3 or omega-6 PUFA and vitamin D have a lower rate of psychotic-like symptoms.</p

Children's and adolescents' rising animal-source food intakes in 1990-2018 were impacted by age, region, parental education and urbanicity

Animal-source foods (ASF) provide nutrition for children and adolescents physical and cognitive development. Here, we use data from the Global Dietary Database and Bayesian hierarchical models to quantify global, regional and national ASF intakes between 1990 and 2018 by age group across 185 countries, representing 93% of the worlds child population. Mean ASF intake was 1.9 servings per day, representing 16% of children consuming at least three daily servings. Intake was similar between boys and girls, but higher among urban children with educated parents. Consumption varied by age from 0.6 at <1 year to 2.5 servings per day at 1519 years. Between 1990 and 2018, mean ASF intake increased by 0.5 servings per week, with increases in all regions except sub-Saharan Africa. In 2018, total ASF consumption was highest in Russia, Brazil, Mexico and Turkey, and lowest in Uganda, India, Kenya and Bangladesh. These findings can inform policy to address malnutrition through targeted ASF consumption programmes. (c) 2023, The Author(s)

Incident type 2 diabetes attributable to suboptimal diet in 184 countries

The global burden of diet-attributable type 2 diabetes (T2D) is not well established. This risk assessment model estimated T2D incidence among adults attributable to direct and body weight-mediated effects of 11 dietary factors in 184 countries in 1990 and 2018. In 2018, suboptimal intake of these dietary factors was estimated to be attributable to 14.1 million (95% uncertainty interval (UI), 13.814.4 million) incident T2D cases, representing 70.3% (68.871.8%) of new cases globally. Largest T2D burdens were attributable to insufficient whole-grain intake (26.1% (25.027.1%)), excess refined rice and wheat intake (24.6% (22.327.2%)) and excess processed meat intake (20.3% (18.323.5%)). Across regions, highest proportional burdens were in central and eastern Europe and central Asia (85.6% (83.487.7%)) and Latin America and the Caribbean (81.8% (80.183.4%)); and lowest proportional burdens were in South Asia (55.4% (52.160.7%)). Proportions of diet-attributable T2D were generally larger in men than in women and were inversely correlated with age. Diet-attributable T2D was generally larger among urban versus rural residents and higher versus lower educated individuals, except in high-income countries, central and eastern Europe and central Asia, where burdens were larger in rural residents and in lower educated individuals. Compared with 1990, global diet-attributable T2D increased by 2.6 absolute percentage points (8.6 million more cases) in 2018, with variation in these trends by world region and dietary factor. These findings inform nutritional priorities and clinical and public health planning to improve dietary quality and reduce T2D globally. (c) 2023, The Author(s)

The Influence of n-3 PUFA Supplements and n-3 PUFA Enriched Foods on the n-3 LC PUFA Intake of Flemish Women

Food consumption data of Flemish women of reproductive age collected in 2002 showed a large deficit for ALA and n-3 LC PUFA compared to the recommendations (mean ALA and EPA + DHA intake 1.4 g/day and 209 mg/day, respectively) and indicated a need to tackle the problem of low n-3 PUFA intake. Another recent Belgian study demonstrated that enrichment of commonly eaten food items with n-3 PUFA provides the opportunity to increase the n-3 PUFA intake up to 6.5 g/day and decrease the n-6/n-3 ratio. Since a large supply of n-3 PUFA supplements and n-3 PUFA enriched foods exists on the Belgian market, this study aimed at assessing the influence of these products on the n-3 LC PUFA intake for Flemish women of reproductive age. It was found that n-3 supplements are consumed by 5% of the Flemish women. Of all the n-3 PUFA enriched foods on the Flemish market, margarines and cooking fat are most frequently consumed by young women. The results indicated that a big gap remains between the EPA&DHA intake (mean = 276 mg/day) and the recommendation. Seafood remains the most important source of EPA&DHA. Only 11.6% of the population sample reached an intake level of 500 mg EPA& DHA per day. The study showed that other strategies will be needed to increase the EPA& DHA intake in the long term

Benefits and risks of fish consumption for the human health

The article aimed at identifying and discussing scientific evidences on the benefits and risks of fish consumption the human health. There was a systematic survey for articles published from 2003 and May 2011, at the MedLine, Scopus, SciELO, Lilacs and Google Scholar databases. The key words used were: fish, food intake, omega-3 fatty acids, fatty fish, benefits, risk, and consumption. The search produced 12,632 articles, 25 eligible cohort studies on possible benefits, 61 on risks and 10 studies that assessed the "risk/benefit" relation. Of the 25 works, 14 suggested a preventive effect of fish consumption related to cardiovascular diseases, depression, cataract and some types of cancer. Evidences of a relation between exposure to mercury and an increase in the risk of neurological disorders, but not of cardiovascular diseases, were also found. Given the importance of fish consumption, its possible risks and the lack of Brazilian studies on the topic, it is important to conduct more longitudinal studies that assess both the benefits and risks of fish consumption for the human health. We also emphasize the need for policies to reduce exposure of fish and seafood to mercury and other contaminants