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  • Original Article
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Dietary fatty acids and insulin secretion: a population-based study

Abstract

Objective:

Few epidemiological studies have examined the relationship of dietary fatty acids, especially MUFA, with the interrelation between insulin secretion and insulin resistance. We assessed the relation of dietary fatty acids with insulin secretion in a free-living population.

Design and setting:

This cross-sectional, population-based study was undertaken in Pizarra, a small town in Spain.

Subjects and methods:

Anthropometrical data were collected for 1226 persons selected randomly from the municipal census, 538 of whom (randomly chosen) were given a prospective, quantitative, 7-day nutritional questionnaire. The fatty acid composition of the serum phospholipids was used as a biological marker of the type of fat consumed. Beta-cell function (βCFI) and insulin-resistance index (IRI) were estimated by the Homeostasis Model Assessment.

Results:

To determine which factors influence the variability of the βCFI, we analyzed the variance of the βCFI according to sex, the presence of carbohydrate metabolism disorders and the different components of the diet, adjusting the models for age, body mass index (BMI) and IRI. The dietary MUFA and polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFA) contributed to the variability of the βCFI, whereas only the proportion of serum phospholipid MUFA, but neither the saturated fatty acids nor the PUFA accounted for part of the variability of the βCFI in a multiple regression analysis.

Conclusion:

The results of this population-based study corroborate the results of other clinical and experimental studies suggesting a favorable relationship of MUFA with β-cell insulin secretion.

Sponsorship:

Fondo de Investigación Sanitaria, Junta de Andalucía and the Asociación Maimónides.

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Acknowledgements

We are grateful to Marieta Catalá, M José Merelo, Araceli González, Isabel García, Salvador Alarcón, Begoña Cano, Patricia Soares, Manuela Beltrán, and Pablo Rodríguez-Bada for their inestimable technical assistance, and to Ian Johnstone for the English language version of the manuscript. This study was undertaken with finance from the Fondo de Investigación Sanitaria of the Instituto de Salud Carlos III (PI021311 and Metabolism and Nutrition Network RCMYN C03-08), Junta de Andalucía (191/2001 and 3/03), and the Asociación Maimónides.

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Correspondence to G Rojo-Martínez.

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Guarantor: G Rojo-Martínez.

Contributors: IE, FS designed the study. GRM and FS wrote the original manuscript and performed the statistical analyses. GRM, IE and FS coordinated the trial. IS, MSRA, JMGA were the responsible for collection of clinical and anthropometrical data. JMGA, FT and EGF were the responsible for collection of nutritional data. FC, SM and EGE analyzed blood samples. All authors contributed to interpretation of data and critically revised the manuscript.

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Rojo-Martínez, G., Esteva, I., Ruiz de Adana, M. et al. Dietary fatty acids and insulin secretion: a population-based study. Eur J Clin Nutr 60, 1195–1200 (2006). https://doi.org/10.1038/sj.ejcn.1602437

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/sj.ejcn.1602437

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