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Fat Quality Index and Risk of Cardiovascular Disease in the Sun Project

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The journal of nutrition, health & aging

Abstract

Objectives

To examine the association between a dietary fat quality index (FQI), and the risk of incident cardiovascular events or deaths in the Seguimiento Universidad de Navarra (SUN) cohort.

Design

Longitudinal analysis during 10.1 years of median follow-up. Cox models were used to estimate adjusted hazard ratios (HR) of incident cardiovascular diseases (CVD) according to tertiles of FQI and of different fat subtypes.

Setting

University of Navarra, Spain.

Participants

19,341 middle-aged adults.

Measurements

Fat intake was measured with a validated food-frequency questionnaire. The FQI was calculated according to the ratio: (monounsaturated+polyunsaturated) / (saturated+trans fatty acids).

Results

We observed 140 incident cases of CVD. No association was found for FQI (HR=0.94, 95 %CI 0.61–1.47 for the highest vs the lowest tertile, p for trend=0.884). No significant associations were found for different dietary fat subtypes on CVD risk. The results suggest no clear association between a higher FQI and a higher amount of energy from fat and incidence of CVD (p for interaction: 0.259 and p for trend only among participants with a percentage of energy from fat ≥35% of total energy: 0.272).

Conclusion

In this Mediterranean cohort, the FQI was not associated with cardiovascular events. A “heart-healthy diet” should focus its attention on dietary fat sources and should use an overall dietary pattern approach, rather than limiting the focus on fat subtypes. More research is needed to validate dietary advice on specific fatty acids intake or saturated fatty acids replacements for reducing CVD risk.

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Abbreviations

BMI:

body mass index

CI:

confidence interval

CVD:

cardiovascular disease

FFQ:

food frequency questionnaire

FQI:

fat quality index

HR:

hazard ratio

MET:

metabolic equivalent index

MUFA:

monounsaturated fatty acids

PUFA:

polyunsaturated fatty acids

SD:

standard deviation

SFA:

saturated fatty acids

SUN:

Seguimiento Universidad de Navarra Follow-up University of Navarra

TFA:

trans fatty acids

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Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. University of Navarra, Department of Nutrition and Food Sciences and Physiology, Irunlarrea 1, 31080, Pamplona, Navarra, Spain

    S. Santiago & Itziar Zazpe

  2. Instituto de Investigación Sanitaria de Navarra (IdiSNA), Pamplona, Navarra, Spain

    S. Santiago, Itziar Zazpe, A. Gea, J. M. Nuñez-Córdoba, S. Carlos, M. Bes-Rastrollo & M. A. Martínez-González

  3. University of Navarra, Department of Preventive Medicine and Public Health, Pamplona, Spain

    Itziar Zazpe, A. Gea, J. M. Nuñez-Córdoba, S. Carlos, M. Bes-Rastrollo & M. A. Martínez-González

  4. Biomedical Research Centre Network on Obesity and Nutrition (CIBERobn) Physiopathology of Obesity and Nutrition, Institute of Health Carlos III, Madrid, Spain

    Itziar Zazpe, A. Gea, M. Bes-Rastrollo & M. A. Martínez-González

  5. Department of Nutrition, Harvard TH Chan School of Public Health, Boston, USA

    M. A. Martínez-González

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  1. S. Santiago
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  2. Itziar Zazpe
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Correspondence to Itziar Zazpe.

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Santiago, S., Zazpe, I., Gea, A. et al. Fat Quality Index and Risk of Cardiovascular Disease in the Sun Project. J Nutr Health Aging 22, 526–533 (2018). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12603-018-1003-y

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s12603-018-1003-y

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