Fats in Foods: Current Evidence for Dietary Advice (original) (raw)
Related papers
Journal of the American Heart Association, 2016
Background Saturated fat ( SFA ), ω‐6 (n‐6) polyunsaturated fat ( PUFA ), and trans fat ( TFA ) influence risk of coronary heart disease ( CHD ), but attributable CHD mortalities by country, age, sex, and time are unclear. Methods and Results National intakes of SFA , n‐6 PUFA , and TFA were estimated using a Bayesian hierarchical model based on country‐specific dietary surveys; food availability data; and, for TFA , industry reports on fats/oils and packaged foods. Etiologic effects of dietary fats on CHD mortality were derived from meta‐analyses of prospective cohorts and CHD mortality rates from the 2010 Global Burden of Diseases study. Absolute and proportional attributable CHD mortality were computed using a comparative risk assessment framework. In 2010, nonoptimal intakes of n‐6 PUFA , SFA , and TFA were estimated to result in 711 800 (95% uncertainty interval [UI] 680 700–745 000), 250 900 (95% UI 236 900–265 800), and 537 200 (95% UI 517 600–557 000) CHD deaths per year wor...
Dietary fats and cardiovascular health: a summary of the scientific evidence and current debate
International journal of food sciences and nutrition, 2018
This narrative review summarises the main studies of the role of the different fatty acids in coronary heart disease (CHD) and cardiovascular disease (CVD) risk and the current scientific debate on dietary recommendations. Reduction and substitution of the saturated fatty acids (SFAs) with the polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFAs) are still the main dietary recommendation to prevent CHD and CVD. In the last few years, however, the strength of the scientific evidence underlying this dietary advice has been questioned. Recent investigations reappraise the previously declared deleterious role of the SFAs and reduce the positive role of PUFAs, mainly the omega-6, whereas the role of monounsaturated fatty acids (MUFAs) remains unclear. In contrast, the negative effects of trans fatty acids (TFAs) seem stronger than previously thought. Finally, criticisms have emerged from a dietary recommendation approach focussed on individual components rather than on wide food items and eating habits.
Dietary fats and cardiovascular disease: Putting together the pieces of a complicated puzzle
Atherosclerosis, 2014
Dietary fatty acids play significant roles in the cause and prevention of cardiovascular disease (CVD). Trans fatty acids from partially hydrogenated vegetable oils have well-established adverse effects and should be eliminated from the human diet. CVD risk can be modestly reduced by decreasing saturated fatty acids (SFA) and replacing it by a combination of polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFA) and monounsaturated fatty acids (MUFA). Although the ideal type of unsaturated fat for this replacement is unclear, the benefits of PUFA appear strongest. Both n-6 and n-3 PUFA are essential and reduce CVD risk. However, additional research is needed to better define the optimal amounts of both and to discern the patients and/or general population that would benefit from supplemental n-3 fatty acid intake. Furthermore, consumption of animal products, per se, is not necessarily associated with increased CVD risk, whereas nut and olive oil intake is associated with reduced CVD risk. In conclusion, the total matrix of a food is more important than just its fatty acid content in predicting the effect of a food on CVD risk, and a healthy diet should be the cornerstone of CVD prevention.
Weighing Evidence of the Role of Saturated and Unsaturated Fats and Human Health
Advances in Nutrition, 2021
The authors' responsibilities were as follows-All authors: wrote and read and approved the final manuscript. Author disclosures: MAB discloses consultancy with Bath and Body Works, grant support from the United Soybean Board and service as an elected board member for the American Society for Nutrition. ER discloses consultancy with Amarin and consultancy, grant support, and personal fees with the California Walnut Commission. The other author reports no conflicts of interest.
American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, 2009
Background: Saturated fatty acid (SFA) intake increases plasma LDL-cholesterol concentrations; therefore, intake should be reduced to prevent coronary heart disease (CHD). Lower habitual intakes of SFAs, however, require substitution of other macronutrients to maintain energy balance. Objective: We investigated associations between energy intake from monounsaturated fatty acids (MUFAs), polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFAs), and carbohydrates and risk of CHD while assessing the potential effect-modifying role of sex and age. Using substitution models, our aim was to clarify whether energy from unsaturated fatty acids or carbohydrates should replace energy from SFAs to prevent CHD. Design: This was a follow-up study in which data from 11 American and European cohort studies were pooled. The outcome measure was incident CHD. Results: During 4-10 y of follow-up, 5249 coronary events and 2155 coronary deaths occurred among 344,696 persons. For a 5% lower energy intake from SFAs and a concomitant higher energy intake from PUFAs, there was a significant inverse association between PUFAs and risk of coronary events (hazard ratio: 0.87; 95% CI: 0.77, 0.97); the hazard ratio for coronary deaths was 0.74 (95% CI: 0.61, 0.89). For a 5% lower energy intake from SFAs and a concomitant higher energy intake from carbohydrates, there was a modest significant direct association between carbohydrates and coronary events (hazard ratio: 1.07; 95% CI: 1.01, 1.14); the hazard ratio for coronary deaths was 0.96 (95% CI: 0.82, 1.13). MUFA intake was not associated with CHD. No effect modification by sex or age was found. Conclusion: The associations suggest that replacing SFAs with PUFAs rather than MUFAs or carbohydrates prevents CHD over a wide range of intakes.
Dietary Fats: Health and Consumers
https://www.ijhsr.org/IJHSR\_Vol.9\_Issue.1\_Jan2019/IJHSR\_Abstract.040.html, 2019
Communication among nutrition experts and consumers is required to convey the nutrition information of foods usually consumed. A case study is presented from Experimental biology symposium that addresses issues between public health and fats. Many researchers have laid their focus on balanced calorie intake and reduction of saturated fats in order to reduce CVD probability in individuals. It has been proven by many scientific evidences that replacement of fats by carbohydrates has no effect on the probability while replacing it with poly unsaturated fats reduces the risk, many significant research centres support this evidence of unsaturated fat benefitting the health, yet a lot of confusion is still prevalent among number of food manufactures and restaurant owners on the risk of CVDs and relation of fat with it.
The recommendation to limit dietary saturated fatty acid (SFA) intake has persisted despite mounting evidence to the contrary. Most recent meta-analyses of randomized trials and observational studies found no beneficial effects of reducing SFA intake on cardiovascular disease (CVD) and total mortality, and instead found protective effects against stroke. Although SFAs increase low-density lipoprotein (LDL) cholesterol, in most individuals, this is not due to increasing levels of small, dense LDL particles, but rather larger LDL particles, which are much less strongly related to CVD risk. It is also apparent that the health effects of foods cannot be predicted by their content in any nutrient group without considering the overall macronutrient distribution. Whole-fat dairy, unprocessed meat, and dark chocolate are SFA-rich foods with a complex matrix that are not associated with increased risk of CVD. The totality of available evidence does not support further limiting the intake of such foods.
2018
BACKGROUND: Coronary heart disease (CHD) is a leading cause of death worldwide. Saturated fats were known as a risk factor for CHD and dietary guidelines restrict the daily consumption of SFs. However, the association between SFs and higher risk of CHD is not clear. This systematic review includes 14 high-quality prospective cohort studies which reported the association between CHD and SFs. OBJECTIVE: This systematic review aims to examine the association between SFs intake and higher risk of CHD among prospective cohort studies. DESIGN: A systematic review was conducted for published literaure in Scopus and ProQuest during the period 2000 to 2017. Studies included if they have a prospective cohort design with follow-up more than 4 years, published in English, and provide information about the association of interest. Data were extracted and summarised into three tables. RESULTS: A total number of 14 prospective cohort studies were included in this review in which all from develop...
American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, 2011
Current dietary recommendations advise reducing the intake of saturated fatty acids (SFAs) to reduce coronary heart disease (CHD) risk, but recent findings question the role of SFAs. This expert panel reviewed the evidence and reached the following conclusions: the evidence from epidemiologic, clinical, and mechanistic studies is consistent in finding that the risk of CHD is reduced when SFAs are replaced with polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFAs). In populations who consume a Western diet, the replacement of 1% of energy from SFAs with PUFAs lowers LDL cholesterol and is likely to produce a reduction in CHD incidence of ≥2-3%. No clear benefit of substituting carbohydrates for SFAs has been shown, although there might be a benefit if the carbohydrate is unrefined and has a low glycemic index. Insufficient evidence exists to judge the effect on CHD risk of replacing SFAs with MUFAs. No clear association between SFA intake relative to refined carbohydrates and the risk of insulin resistance and diabetes has been shown. The effect of diet on a single biomarker is insufficient evidence to assess CHD risk. The combination of multiple biomarkers and the use of clinical endpoints could help substantiate the effects on CHD. Furthermore, the effect of particular foods on CHD cannot be predicted solely by their content of total SFAs because individual SFAs may have different cardiovascular effects and major SFA food sources contain other constituents that could influence CHD risk. Research is needed to clarify the role of SFAs compared with specific forms of carbohydrates in CHD risk and to compare specific foods with appropriate alternatives.
Dietary Saturated Fats and Health: Are the U.S. Guidelines Evidence-Based?
Nutrients
The last decade has seen nearly 20 papers reviewing the totality of the data on saturated fats and cardiovascular outcomes, which, altogether, have demonstrated a lack of rigorous evidence to support continued recommendations either to limit the consumption of saturated fatty acids or to replace them with polyunsaturated fatty acids. These papers were unfortunately not considered by the process leading to the most recent U.S. Dietary Guidelines for Americans, the country’s national nutrition policy, which recently reconfirmed its recommendation to limit saturated fats to 10% or less of total energy intake, based on insufficient and inconsistent evidence. Continuation of a cap on saturated fat intake also fails to consider the important effects of the food matrix and the overall dietary pattern in which saturated fatty acids are consumed.