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  • Original Article
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Lipids and cardiovascular/metabolic health

Alpha-linolenic acid (ALA) is inversely related to development of adiposity in school-age children

European Journal of Clinical Nutrition volume 69, pages 167–172 (2015)Cite this article

Subjects

Abstract

Background/objectives:

Studies in adults indicate that dietary polyunsaturated fatty acid (PUFA) composition may play a role in development of adiposity. Because adipocyte quantity is established between late childhood and early adolescence, understanding the impact of PUFAs on weight gain during the school-age years is crucial to developing effective interventions.

Subjects/methods:

We quantified N-3 and N-6 PUFAs in serum samples of 668 Colombian schoolchildren aged 5–12 years at the time of recruitment into a cohort study, using gas–liquid chromatography. Serum concentrations of N-3 (alpha-linolenic acid (ALA), eicosapentaenoic acid, docosahexaenoic acid) and N-6 PUFAs (linoleic acid, gamma-linolenic acid, dihomo-gamma-linolenic acid, arachidonic acid) were determined as percentage total fatty acids. Children’s anthropometry was measured annually for a median of 30 months. We used mixed-effects models with restricted cubic splines to construct population body mass index-for-age z-score (BAZ) growth curves for age- and sex-specific quartiles of each PUFA.

Results:

N-3 ALA was inversely related to BAZ gain after adjustment for sex, baseline age and weight status, as well as household socioeconomic level. Estimated BAZ change between 6 and 14 years among children in the highest quartile of ALA compared with those in the lowest quartile was 0.45 (95% confidence interval: 0.07, 0.83) lower (P-trend=0.006).

Conclusions:

N-3 ALA may be protective against weight gain in school-age children. Whether improvement in PUFA status reduces adiposity in pediatric populations deserves evaluation in randomized trials.

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Acknowledgements

This study was supported by the University of Michigan Nutrition Obesity Research Center (NORC) pilot grant (P30 DK089503) and the ASISA Research Fund at the University of Michigan.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Population Medicine, Harvard Medical School and Harvard Pilgrim Health Care Institute, Boston, MA, USA

    W Perng

  2. Department of Epidemiology, University of Michigan School of Public Health, Ann Arbor, MI, USA

    E Villamor & A Baylin

  3. Fundación para Investigación en Nutrición y Salud, FINUSAD, Bogotá, Colombia

    M Mora-Plazas & C Marin

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  1. W Perng
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Correspondence to W Perng.

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Perng, W., Villamor, E., Mora-Plazas, M. et al. Alpha-linolenic acid (ALA) is inversely related to development of adiposity in school-age children. Eur J Clin Nutr 69, 167–172 (2015). https://doi.org/10.1038/ejcn.2014.210

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