Consumption of individual saturated fatty acids and the risk of myocardial infarction in a UK and a Danish cohort

Abstract

Background The effect of individual saturated fatty acids (SFAs) on serum cholesterol levels depends on their carbon-chain length. Whether the association with myocardial infarction (MI) also differs across individual SFAs is unclear. We examined the association between consumption of individual SFAs, differing in chain lengths ranging from 4 through 18 carbons, and risk of MI. Methods We used data from 22050 and 53375 participants from EPIC-Norfolk (UK) and EPIC-Denmark, respectively. Baseline SFA intakes were assessed through validated, country-specific food frequency questionnaires. Cox regression analysis was used to estimate associations between intakes of individual SFAs and MI risk, for each cohort separately. Results During median follow-up times of 18.8 years in EPIC-Norfolk and 13.6 years in Denmark, respectively, 1204 and 2260 MI events occurred. Mean (±SD) total SFA intake was 13.3 (±3.5) en% in EPIC-Norfolk, and 12.5 (±2.6) en% in EPIC-Denmark. After multivariable adjustment, intakes of C12:0 (lauric acid) and C14:0 (myristic acid) inversely associated with MI risk in EPIC-Denmark (HR upper versus lowest quintile: 0.80 (95%CI:0.66,0.96) for both SFAs). Intakes in the third and fourth quintiles of C4:0-C10:0 also associated with lower MI risk in EPIC-Denmark. Moreover, substitution of C16:0 (palmitic acid) and C18:0 (stearic acid) with plant proteins resulted in a reduction of MI risk in EPIC-Denmark (HR per 1 energy%: 0.86 (95%CI:0.78,0.95) and 0.87 (95%CI:0.79,0.96) respectively). No such associations were found in EPIC-Norfolk. Conclusion The results from the present study suggest that the association between SFA and MI risk depends on the carbon chain-length of the SFA.

The Short Overview on the Relevance of Fatty Acids for Human Cardiovascular Disorders

“…For instance, in the prospective investigations [44,45], it has been demonstrated that high consumption of stearic acid does not correlate with a higher risk of IHD and MI. By contrast, in the prospective cohort study by Zong et al [46] and in research Praagman et al [47], stearic acid was found to make a major contribution to the development and course of IHD. Hunter et al [48] have shown an independent relation of stearic FA with a higher risk of IHD, but this link turned out to be weak after normalization to the sum of other studied SFA (lauric, myristic, and palmitic acids).…”

“…Myristic acid (C14:0) -↑ the risk of developing IHD; ↑ total cholesterol concentration [32,39] Palmitic acid (C16:0) -↑ production of pro-inflammatory cytokines and oxidants; promotes inflammation and the development of CVD [31,32,[34][35][36][37] ↓ LDL, glucose, arterial blood pressure normalizes [30] Stearic acid (C18:0) ± not correlate with a higher risk of IHD and MI; induces apoptosis and necrosis of endothelial cells; ↑ the risk of developing IHD [27,[44][45][46][47][48] does not have a significant influence on lipid metabolism [10,41] Palmitoleic acid (C16:1) ± ↓ cholesterol and TG concentrations; ↑ HDL cholesterol concentrations [56,57]; ↑ the risk of developing IHD [32] Oleic acid (C18:1) ± can improve the blood lipid profile [65]; ↓ the risk of atherosclerosis [69]; ↑ TG concentrations; ↑ markers of inflammation; ↑ the risk of developing heart failure [36,71] Linoleic acid (C18:2) + ↓ risk developing IHD and death from IHD [140,141]; does not affect the concentrations of inflammatory biomarkers [146,147] ↑ risk of arterial hypertension [154][155][156] α-Linolenic acid (C18:3) + ↓ the risk of death from IHD; ↓ the levels of LDL and total cholesterol; ↑ the levels of HDL [80][81][82];…”

The Comparison of Fatty Acid Composition and Lipid Quality Indices in Hard Cow, Sheep, and Goat Cheeses

“…The effect of SFA on serum cholesterol levels in humans depends on the length of the carbon chains of fatty acids [6,7]. According to Praagmana et al [8],…”

Role of endoplasmic reticulum stress in renal damage after myocardial infarction

“…In this sense, a high intake of saturated fatty acids is considered an important risk factor for coronary heart disease through to its ability to raise low-density lipoprotein cholesterol. It has been demonstrated the relevance of different across types of saturated fatty acids based on the chain-length on cardiovascular diseases and in MI (47). In this sense, PA (C16:0) is associated with high coronary heart disease while other saturated fatty acids with other carbon chain lengths were not in a prospective cohort study (48) In human proximal tubule epithelial cells, PA has been demonstrated to induce ER stress as well as Ang II in cultured medium.…”