Plasma phospholipid and dietary fatty acids as predictors of type 2 diabetes: interpreting the role of linoleic acid

Abstract

Background: Dietary fatty acids may be associated with diabetes but are difficult to measure accurately. Objective: We aimed to investigate the associations of fatty acids in plasma and diet with diabetes incidence. Design: This was a prospective case-cohort study of 3737 adults aged 36 -72 y. Fatty acid intake (/kJ) and plasma phospholipid fatty acids (%) were measured at baseline, and diabetes incidence was assessed by self-report 4 y later. Logistic regression excluding (model 1) and including (model 2) body mass index and waist-hip ratio was used to calculate odds ratios (ORs) for plasma phospholipid and dietary fatty acids. (1.00, 2.14), P for trend ҃ 0.030] acids were positively associated with diabetes incidence before adjustment for body size. Within each quintile of linoleic acid intake, cases had lower baseline plasma phospholipid linoleic acid proportions than did controls. Conclusions: Dietary saturated fat intake is inversely associated with diabetes risk. More research is required to determine whether linoleic acid is an appropriate dietary substitute. 2007;86:189 -97. Am J Clin Nutr

Dairy Consumption, Type 2 Diabetes, and Changes in Cardiometabolic Traits: A Prospective Cohort Study of Middle-Aged and Older Chinese in Beijing and Shanghai

“…Several circulating fatty acids (e.g., 15:0, 17:0) have been suggested as biomarkers of dairy consumption (17)(18)(19), and they were reported to be associated with lower risk of diabetes (20,21) or cardiovascular disease (22,23). Previously, we found that erythrocyte trans-18:1 isomers are associated with dairy product consumption and lower prevalence of metabolic syndrome and diabetes in middle-aged and older Chinese men and women (24).…”

Serum saturated fatty acids containing triacylglycerols are better markers of insulin resistance than total serum triacylglycerol concentrations

“…On the other hand, changes in saturated and monounsaturated fatty acids with respect to insulin resistance were lipoprotein-specific. Epidemiological prospective studies have shown that high proportions of esterified palmitic and stearic, and low proportions of esterified linoleic fatty acids in serum are risk factors for type 2 diabetes [33][34][35], myocardial infarction [36,37], the metabolic syndrome [38] and overall and cardiovascular mortality [39]. The relationship between the amount of polyunsaturated fat in the diet and the respective proportions of serum esterified polyunsaturated fatty acids is strong [40,10].…”

Fatty Acids and Associated Cardiovascular Risk

“…The implication of FA, particularly, omega-3 and -6 in different diseases has been widely published in literature [2][3][4][5][6][7][8][9]. SFA, abundantly found in our diet, participate in the development of certain metabolic abnormalities such as insulin resistance or atherosclerosis [10,11].…”

“…Finally, this class of fatty acids probably contributes to the development of atherosclerotic plaques because it causes increased plasma concentrations of LDL-cholesterol [12]. All of this knowledge means that the current intake of SFA in western food, and in particular, palmitic acid, is a key player in the expansion of certain metabolic diseases such as type 2 diabetes, cardiovascular disease or metabolic syndrome [8,14]. Dietary long-chain, polyunsaturated fatty acid (PUFA) also benefit the blood vessel wall by enhancing cell membrane fluidity and regulating membrane receptors [15].…”