Intake of Different Types of Fatty Acids in Infancy Is Not Associated with Growth, Adiposity, or Cardiometabolic Health up to 6 Years of Age.

Background: Studies in adults indicate that a lower saturated and higher unsaturated fat intake is associated with a lower risk of metabolic syndrome and cardiovascular diseases. However, studies on fat intake in relation to cardiometabolic health during childhood are scarce.Objective: We examined associations between dietary intake of fatty acids (FAs) at age 1 y and measures of growth, adiposity, and cardiometabolic health up to age 6 y.Methods: This study was conducted in 2927 children participating in the Generation R Study, a multiethnic, prospective, population-based cohort in the Netherlands. We measured children's total fat intake and intakes of saturated FAs (SFAs), monounsaturated FAs (MUFAs), and polyunsaturated FAs (PUFAs) at a median age of 12.9 mo (95% range: 12.2, 18.9 mo) with a food-frequency questionnaire. We repeatedly measured their height and weight up to age 6 y. At 6 y of age, we measured body fat percentage, diastolic and systolic blood pressure, and serum insulin, triacylglycerol, and HDL cholesterol. These outcomes were combined into a cardiometabolic risk factor score. We examined associations of FA intake with repeated measures of height, weight, and body mass index by using linear mixed models and with cardiometabolic outcomes by using linear regression models, adjusting for sociodemographic and lifestyle factors and taking into account macronutrient substitution effects.Results: In multivariable models, we observed no associations of a higher intake of total fat or SFAs, MUFAs, or PUFAs with growth, adiposity, or cardiometabolic health when fat was consumed at the expense of carbohydrates. In subsequent models, there were also no associations observed for higher MUFA or PUFA intakes at the expense of SFAs with any of the outcomes. Results did not differ by sex, ethnicity, age, or birth weight.Conclusion: The results of this study did not support our hypothesis that intake of different types of FAs was associated with adiposity or cardiometabolic health among children.

Plasma fatty acid patterns during pregnancy and child's growth, body composition, and cardiometabolic health: The Generation R Study.

BACKGROUND: Exposure to different concentrations of fatty acids during fetal life may affect growth and metabolism. However, most studies examined individual fatty acids, whereas concentrations highly correlate and may interact with each other. We aimed to evaluate patterns of plasma fatty acids during pregnancy and their associations with growth, body composition, and cardiometabolic health of the 6-year-old offspring. METHODS: This study was performed in 4830 mother-child pairs participating in a population-based cohort in the Netherlands. Around 20 weeks of gestation, we measured plasma phospholipid concentrations of 22 fatty acids, in which we identified three fatty acid patterns using principal component analysis: a 'high n-6 polyunsaturated fatty acid (PUFA)' pattern, a 'monounsaturated and saturated fatty acid (MUFA and SFA)' pattern, and a 'high n-3 PUFA' pattern. When the children were 6 years old, we measured their anthropometrics and detailed body composition (using dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry), and we calculated their body mass index (BMI), fat mass index (FMI), fat-free mass index (FFMI). At the same age, children's blood pressure, and serum insulin, HDL-cholesterol, and triacylglycerol were measured. RESULTS: After adjustment for confounders and the other patterns, a higher score for the 'high n-6 PUFA' pattern during pregnancy was associated with a higher height, BMI, and FFMI in the offspring at 6 years, but not independently with cardiometabolic outcomes. The 'MUFA and SFA' pattern was not consistently associated with child body composition or cardiometabolic health. A higher score for the 'high n-3 PUFA' pattern was associated with a lower FMI, higher FFMI, higher HDL-cholesterol, and lower triacylglycerol. CONCLUSIONS: Our results suggest that plasma fatty acid patterns during pregnancy may affect offspring's body composition and cardiometabolic health. Specifically, a pattern characterized by high n-3 PUFA levels was associated with a more favorable body composition and blood lipid profile.