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Dietary fat in infancy should be more focused on quality than on quantity

European Journal of Clinical Nutrition volume 62, pages 1058–1064 (2008)Cite this article

Abstract

Objective:

The primary aim was to assess, the association of the quantity and quality of dietary fat intake from 6 to 12 months of age and serum lipids at 12 months.

Subjects/Methods:

Three hundred healthy term Swedish infants were recruited in a longitudinal prospective study at the age of 6 months; 276 remained in the study at 12 months. Food records and anthropometric data were collected monthly from 6 to 12 months; serum lipids were analysed at 6 and 12 months.

Results:

Swedish infants had a total fat intake within the Nordic recommendations, but intake of polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFA) was low (5.6 percent of total energy (E%)) and intake of saturated fatty acids (SAFA) was high (15.1 E%). Higher PUFA intake was associated with lower total serum cholesterol (TC, B=−0.13, P=0.003), lower low-density-lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C, B=−0.12, P=0.004) and apolipoprotein B (B=−0.03) (P=0.034) in girls but not in boys. When data from the present study were compared to data from similar studies in Finland and Iceland, it appears that the quality of the dietary fat has greater impact on serum lipid levels than the quantity of fat in the diet.

Conclusions:

Higher PUFA and lower SAFA intakes may reduce TC and LDL-C early in life, particularly in girls. Further, with respect to lowering serum lipid concentrations in early childhood it seems appropriate to set focus on fat quality rather than the quantity.

Sponsorships:

Swedish Research Council for Environment, Agricultural Sciences and Spatial Planning (Formas), Swedish Research Council, Medicine, Stiftelsen Oskar Foundation, Sven Jerring Foundation, Samariten Foundation, Stiftelsen Goljes minne and Semper AB.

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Acknowledgements

We are grateful to the participating children and their parents in the study and to research nurse Margareta Henriksson, Umeå, for help with collecting data. Catharina Tennefors, Semper AB, contributed in the planning of the study. We also thank Hans Stenlund, Public Health and Clinical Medicine, Epidemiology and Public Health Sciences, Umeå University, for invaluable statistical support.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Food and Nutrition, Pediatrics, Umeå University, Umeå, Sweden

    I Öhlund & A Hörnell

  2. Department of Clinical Sciences, Pediatrics, Umeå University, Umeå, Sweden

    I Öhlund, T Lind & O Hernell

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  1. I Öhlund
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  2. A Hörnell
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  3. T Lind
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  4. O Hernell
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Correspondence to I Öhlund.

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Öhlund, I., Hörnell, A., Lind, T. et al. Dietary fat in infancy should be more focused on quality than on quantity. Eur J Clin Nutr 62, 1058–1064 (2008). https://doi.org/10.1038/sj.ejcn.1602824

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