Original Article

European Journal of Clinical Nutrition (2009) 63, 1071–1075; doi:10.1038/ejcn.2009.40; published online 17 June 2009

Age and time trends in fish consumption pattern of children and adolescents, and consequences for the intake of long-chain n-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids

Contributors: WSH analyzed the data and was primarily responsible for the preparation of the paper. MK initiated the evaluation and took part in the interpretation and the discussion of all results. MW prepared the data sets and tables.

W Sichert-Hellert1, M Wicher1 and M Kersting1

1Research Institute of Child Nutrition (FKE), Rheinische Friedrich-Wilhelms-Universität, Bonn, Germany

Correspondence: Dr W Sichert-Hellert, Forschungsinstitut fuer Kinderernaehrung (FKE), D-44225 Dortmund, Heinstueck 11, Germany. E-mail: sichert@fke-do.de

Received 17 June 2008; Revised 26 January 2009; Accepted 16 April 2009; Published online 17 June 2009.

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Abstract

Background/Objectives:

 

There is a lack of detailed data on fish consumption in European children and adolescents. We therefore investigated fish consumption patterns, portion sizes and estimated intakes of long-chain n-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFA; eicosapentaenoic acid, docosahexaenoic acid).

Subjects/Methods:

 

From the Dortmund Nutritional and Anthropometric Longitudinally Designed study between 1985 and 2006, yearly 3-day weighed dietary records (N=7152) from 1024 subjects (2–18 years, 49% males) were evaluated.

Results:

 

On 14% of total recorded days fish consumption from 33 different species was documented. In the total sample (in the subgroup with fish intake), mean fish intake almost doubled from 5 to 14 g per day (from 15 to 37 g per day) within the age range. Mean portions of fish increased from 40 to 89 g per portion, predominantly from low-fat fish species. In the total sample mean long-chain (LC) n-3 PUFA intake increased with age from 42 to 141 mg per day (100–324 mg per day in the subgroup with fish intake). Without any fish consumption in the recording period, n-3 LC PUFA intake ranged below 20 mg per day. Within the 20-year time frame, the frequency of fish consumption increased significantly (P<0.0282) from 35% at the start in 1985 to 40% in 2005.

Conclusions:

 

Fish consumption—even with low intakes as observed here—improves LC n-3 PUFA considerably. Owing to the very low preference for high-fat fish in our sample, the potential of fish intake as an LC n-3 PUFA source was not considered.

Keywords:

dietary record, children, adolescents, fish consumption, long-chain n-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids, PUFA

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