Trans fats

Role of diet on chronic inflammation prevention and control - current evidences

Geraldo JM, Alfenas Rde C. Arq Bras Endocrinol Metabol. 2008 Aug;52(6):951-67.
Departamento de Nutrição e Saúde da Universidade Federal de Viçosa, MG, Brasil. junianut@yahoo.com.br

It is known that low chronic inflammation occurs in several stages of non transmissible chronic diseases, including cardiovascular diseases, obesity and diabetes mellitus, among others. Observational studies and clinical trials indicate that diet plays an important role in the reduction of such diseases. The present manuscript discusses the studies that linked diet macronutrient composition and the levels of inflammatory markers. It has been suggested that the consumption of high glycemic index diets, which have low fiber content and are rich in trans fat cause the activation of the immune system, leading to excessive production of pro-inflammatory mediators and the reduction of the anti-inflammatory ones. Although the results are controversial, healthy dietary intakes with the reduction in fat intake (especially trans and saturated fat) and the increase in fruits, vegetables, and whole grain consumption seem to be associated with the improvement in subclinical inflammatory condition.

Dietary fat, cooking fat, and breast cancer risk in a multiethnic population.

Wang J, John EM, Horn-Ross PL, Ingles SA. Nutr Cancer. 2008;60(4):492-504.
Department of Medicine, Tufts Medical Center, Boston, Massachusetts 02111, USA. jwang1@tuftsmedicalcenter.org

Our objective was to examine the association between dietary fat intake, cooking fat usage, and breast cancer risk in a population-based, multiethnic, case-control study conducted in the San Francisco Bay area. Intake of total fat and types of fat were assessed with a food frequency questionnaire among 1,703 breast cancer cases diagnosed between 1995 and 1999 and 2,045 controls. In addition, preferred use of fat for cooking was assessed. Unconditional logistic regression was used to estimate odds ratios (ORs) and 95% confidence intervals (CIs). High fat intake was associated with increased risk of breast cancer (highest vs. lowest quartile, adjusted OR = 1.35, 95% CI = 1.10-1.65, P(trend) < 0.01). A positive association was found for oleic acid (OR = 1.55, 95% CI = 1.14-2.10, P(trend) < 0.01) but not for linoleic acid or saturated fat. Risk was increased for women cooking with hydrogenated fats (OR = 1.58, 95% CI = 1.20-2.10) or vegetable/corn oil (rich in linoleic acid; OR = 1.30, 95% CI = 1.06-1.58) compared to women using olive/canola oil (rich in oleic acid). Our results suggest that a low-fat diet may play a role in breast cancer prevention. We speculate that monounsaturated trans fats may have driven the discrepant associations between types of fat and breast cancer.


Specific fatty acid intake and the risk of pancreatic cancer in Canada.

Nkondjock A, Krewski D, Johnson KC, Ghadirian P; Canadian Cancer Registries Epidemiology Research Group. Br J Cancer. 2005 Mar 14;92(5):971-7.
Epidemiology Research Unit, Research Centre, Centre hospitalier de l'Université de Montréal (CHUM)-Hôtel-Dieu, Montreal, QC, Canada.

The possible association of specific fatty acid (FA) intake and pancreatic cancer risk was investigated in a population-based case-control study of 462 histologically confirmed cases and 4721 frequency-matched controls in eight Canadian provinces between 1994 and 1997. Dietary intake was assessed by means of a self-administered food frequency questionnaire. Unconditional logistic regression was used to assess associations between dietary FAs and pancreatic cancer risk. After adjustment for age, province, body mass index, smoking, educational attainment, fat and total energy intake, statistically significant inverse associations were observed between pancreatic cancer risk and palmitate (odds ratios (ORs)=0.73; 95% confidence intervals (CIs) 0.56-0.96; P-trend=0.02), stearate (OR=0.70; 95% CI 0.51-0.94; P-trend=0.04), oleate (OR=0.75; 95% CI 0.55-1.02; P-trend=0.04), saturated FAs (OR=0.67; 95% CI 0.50-0.91; P-trend=0.01), and monounsaturated FAs (OR=0.72; 95% CI 0.53-0.98; P-trend=0.02), when comparing the highest quartile of intake to the lowest. Significant interactions were detected between body mass index and both saturated and monounsaturated FAs, with a markedly reduced risk associated with intake of stearate (OR=0.36; 95% CI 0.18-0.70; P-trend=0.001), oleate (OR=0.36; 95% CI 0.19-0.72; P-trend=0.002), saturated FAs (OR=0.35; 95% CI 0.18-0.67; P-trend=0.002), and monounsaturated FAs (OR=0.32; 95% CI 0.16-0.63; P-trend<0.0001) among subjects who are obese. The results suggest that substituting polyunsaturated FAs with saturated or monounsaturated FAs may reduce pancreatic cancer risk, independently of total energy intake, particularly among obese subjects.

trans fat, hydrolized fat, modified fat,

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