A Half-Truth is Not the Whole Truth: The AHA Position on Saturated Fat
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.26534/kimika.v28i2.48-54Abstract
This second in this series of papers will present the biases in the American Heart Association’s 2017 Presidential Advisory with respect to saturated fat. Although important differences in the metabolic properties of specific SFA have been known since the 1960s, the AHA still considers all SFA as one group having the same properties. There is abundant research available that supports the designation of C6 to C12 fatty acids as medium-chain fatty acids (MCFA). This is particularly relevant to coconut oil, which is made up of about 65% MCFA. Ignoring the evidence, AHA simply labels coconut oil as SFA. The AHA promotes half-truths, not the whole truth.
References
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Dayrit FM (2017). The Warning on Saturated Fat: From Defective Experiments to Defective Guidelines. https://www.apccsec.org/apccsec/apccsec-home.html.
Delany JP, Windhauser MM, Champagne CM, Bray GA (2000). Differential oxidation of individual dietary fatty acids in humans. Am J Clin Nutr. 72(4):905-911.
Debois D, Bralet M-P, Le Naour F, Brunelle XA, Laprevote O (2009). In Situ Lipidomic Analysis of Nonalcoholic Fatty Liver by Cluster TOF-SIMS Imaging. Anal Chem. 81:2823–2831.
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Gunstone, F (1996). Fatty Acid and Lipid Chemistry. Blackie: London.
Hamilton JA (1998). Fatty acid transport: difficult or easy? J. Lipid Res. 39:467–481.
Harkins RW, Sarett HP (1968). Medium-Chain Triglycerides. J Am Med Assoc. 203(4):272-274.
Hoogeveen RC, Gaubatz JW, Sun W, Dodge RC, Crosby JR, Jiang J, Couper D, Virani SS, Kathiresan S, Boerwinkle E, Ballantyne CM (2014). Small Dense Low-Density Lipoprotein-Cholesterol Concentrations Predict Risk for Coronary Heart Disease. Arterioscler Thromb Vasc Biol. 34:1069-1077
Keys A (1957). Epidemiologic aspects of coronary artery disease. J Chron Dis. 6(5): 552-559.
Knox E, VanderJagt DJ, Shatima D, Huang YS, Chuang LT, Glew RH (2000). Nutritional status and intermediate chain-length fatty acids influence the conservation of essential fatty acids in the milk of northern Nigerian women. Prostaglandins Leukot Essent Fatty Acids 63(4):195-202.
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Linna M, Ahotupa M, Lopponen MK, Irjala K, Vasankari T (2012). Circulating oxidised LDL lipids, when proportioned to HDL-c, emerged as a risk factor of all-cause mortality in a population-based survival study. Age and Ageing 0: 1–4.
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Mansson HL (2008). Fatty acids in bovine milk fat. Food & Nutrition Research 2008. DOI: 10.3402/fnr.v52i0.1821.
Mattson FH, Volpenhein RA (1969). Relative rates of hydrolysis by rat pancreatic lipase of esters of C2-C18 fatty acids with C1-C18 primary n-alcohols. J. Lipid Res. 10:271-276.
McCarty MF, James J DiNicolantonio JJ (2016). Lauric acid-rich medium-chain triglycerides can substitute for other oils in cooking applications and may have limited pathogenicity. Open Heart 3:e000467. doi:10.1136/openhrt-2016-000467.
Mensink RP, Zock PL, Kester ADM, Katan MB (2003). Effects of dietary fatty acids and carbohydrates on the ratio of serum total to HDL-cholesterol and on serum lipids and apolipoproteins: a meta-analysis of 60 controlled trials. Am J Clin Nutr. 77:1146–1155.
Sacks FM, Lichtenstein AH, Wu JHY, Appel LJ, Creager MA, Kris-Etherton PM, Miller M, Rimm EB, Rudel LL, Robinson JG, Stone NJ, Van Horn LV (2017). Dietary Fats and Cardiovascular Disease, A Presidential Advisory From the American Heart Association. Circulation. 2017;135: e1-e24.
Schon H, Gey F, Strecker FJ, Weitzel G (1955). Metabolic studies with fatty acids of intermediate chain length. III. Feeding experiments with lauric acid esters. Hoppe Seylers Z Physiol Chem. 301(3):143-155.
Schonfeld P, Wojtczak L (2016). Short- and medium-chain fatty acids in the energy metabolism – the cellular perspective. J Lipid Res. 57: 943-954.
Senior JR (editor). 1968. Medium Chain Triglycerides, Univ. of Pennsylvania Press., cited in: Sulkers EJ, The use of medium-chain triglycerides in preterm infants. Thesis, Erasmus University Rotterdam, 1993. ISBN 90-9006053-7
Sigalet DL, Winkelaar GB, Smith LJ (1997). Determination of the route of medium-chain and long-chain fatty acid absorption by direct measurement in the rat. JPEN J Parenter Enteral Nutr. 21(5):275-278.
[TMIC] The Metabolomics Innovation Center (2017). Metabocard for Dodecanoic acid. Canadian Institutes of Health Research, Alberta Innovates – Health Solutions, and The Metabolomics Innovation Centre (TMIC). http://www.hmdb.ca/metabolites/HMDB00638 (downloaded: June 11, 2017).
Toft-Petersen AP, Tilsted HH, Aarøe J, Rasmussen K, Christensen T, Griffin BA, Aardestrup IV, Andreasen A, Schmidt EB (2011). Small dense LDL particles – a predictor of coronary artery disease evaluated by invasive and CT-based techniques: a case-control study. Lipids in Health and Disease 2011, 10:21. http://www.lipidworld.com/content/10/1/21.
You YQN, Ling PR, Qu JZ, Bistrian BR (2008). Effects of Medium-Chain Triglycerides, Long-Chain Triglycerides, or 2-Monododecanoin on Fatty Acid Composition in the Portal Vein, Intestinal Lymph, and Systemic Circulation in Rats. JPEN J Parenter Enteral Nutr. 32(2): 169–175.
Akkaoui M, Cohen I, Esnous C, Lenoir V, Sournac M, Girard J (2009). Modulation of the hepatic malonyl-CoA–carnitine palmitoyltransferase 1A partnership creates a metabolic switch allowing oxidation of de novo fatty acids. Biochem J. 420: 429–438
Bach AC, Babayan VK (1982). Medium-chain triglycerides: an update. Am J Clin Nutr. 36:950-962.
Bremer J (1983). Carnitine-Metabolism and Functions. Physiol Rev. 63(4):1420-1466.
[Codex] Codex Alimentarius 210-1999, amended 2015, FAO.
da Luz PL, Favarato D, Faria-Neto Jr, Lemos P; Chagas ACP (2008). High ratio of triglycerides to HDL cholesterol ratio predicts extensive coronary disease. Clinics. 63:427-32.
Dayrit FM (2015). The Properties of Lauric Acid and their Significance in Coconut Oil. J Am Oil Chem. Soc. 92:1-15.
Dayrit FM (2017). The Warning on Saturated Fat: From Defective Experiments to Defective Guidelines. https://www.apccsec.org/apccsec/apccsec-home.html.
Delany JP, Windhauser MM, Champagne CM, Bray GA (2000). Differential oxidation of individual dietary fatty acids in humans. Am J Clin Nutr. 72(4):905-911.
Debois D, Bralet M-P, Le Naour F, Brunelle XA, Laprevote O (2009). In Situ Lipidomic Analysis of Nonalcoholic Fatty Liver by Cluster TOF-SIMS Imaging. Anal Chem. 81:2823–2831.
[FDA] Food and Drug Administration. 2012. GRAS Notice (GRN) No. 449. http://www.fda.gov/Food/FoodIngredientsPackaging/GenerallyRecognizedasSafeGRAS/GRASListings/default.htm
Goransson G (1965). The Metabolism of Fatty Acids in the Rat. VIII. Lauric Acid and Myristic Acid. Acta Physiol Scand. 64: 383-386.
Gunstone, F (1996). Fatty Acid and Lipid Chemistry. Blackie: London.
Hamilton JA (1998). Fatty acid transport: difficult or easy? J. Lipid Res. 39:467–481.
Harkins RW, Sarett HP (1968). Medium-Chain Triglycerides. J Am Med Assoc. 203(4):272-274.
Hoogeveen RC, Gaubatz JW, Sun W, Dodge RC, Crosby JR, Jiang J, Couper D, Virani SS, Kathiresan S, Boerwinkle E, Ballantyne CM (2014). Small Dense Low-Density Lipoprotein-Cholesterol Concentrations Predict Risk for Coronary Heart Disease. Arterioscler Thromb Vasc Biol. 34:1069-1077
Keys A (1957). Epidemiologic aspects of coronary artery disease. J Chron Dis. 6(5): 552-559.
Knox E, VanderJagt DJ, Shatima D, Huang YS, Chuang LT, Glew RH (2000). Nutritional status and intermediate chain-length fatty acids influence the conservation of essential fatty acids in the milk of northern Nigerian women. Prostaglandins Leukot Essent Fatty Acids 63(4):195-202.
Kotronen A, Seppänen-Laakso T, Westerbacka J, Kiviluoto T, Arola J, Ruskeepää A-L, Yki-Järvinen H, OreÅ¡iÄ M (2010). Comparison of Lipid and Fatty Acid Composition of the Liver, Subcutaneous and Intra-abdominal Adipose Tissue, and Serum. Obesity 18:937–944.
Krebs HA, Hems R (1970). Fatty Acid Metabolism in the Perfused Rat Liver. Biochem J. 119: 525-533.
Linna M, Ahotupa M, Lopponen MK, Irjala K, Vasankari T (2012). Circulating oxidised LDL lipids, when proportioned to HDL-c, emerged as a risk factor of all-cause mortality in a population-based survival study. Age and Ageing 0: 1–4.
Liu YC (2008). Medium-chain triglyceride (MCT) ketogenic therapy. Epilepsia 49(Suppl. 8):33–36.
Mansson HL (2008). Fatty acids in bovine milk fat. Food & Nutrition Research 2008. DOI: 10.3402/fnr.v52i0.1821.
Mattson FH, Volpenhein RA (1969). Relative rates of hydrolysis by rat pancreatic lipase of esters of C2-C18 fatty acids with C1-C18 primary n-alcohols. J. Lipid Res. 10:271-276.
McCarty MF, James J DiNicolantonio JJ (2016). Lauric acid-rich medium-chain triglycerides can substitute for other oils in cooking applications and may have limited pathogenicity. Open Heart 3:e000467. doi:10.1136/openhrt-2016-000467.
Mensink RP, Zock PL, Kester ADM, Katan MB (2003). Effects of dietary fatty acids and carbohydrates on the ratio of serum total to HDL-cholesterol and on serum lipids and apolipoproteins: a meta-analysis of 60 controlled trials. Am J Clin Nutr. 77:1146–1155.
Sacks FM, Lichtenstein AH, Wu JHY, Appel LJ, Creager MA, Kris-Etherton PM, Miller M, Rimm EB, Rudel LL, Robinson JG, Stone NJ, Van Horn LV (2017). Dietary Fats and Cardiovascular Disease, A Presidential Advisory From the American Heart Association. Circulation. 2017;135: e1-e24.
Schon H, Gey F, Strecker FJ, Weitzel G (1955). Metabolic studies with fatty acids of intermediate chain length. III. Feeding experiments with lauric acid esters. Hoppe Seylers Z Physiol Chem. 301(3):143-155.
Schonfeld P, Wojtczak L (2016). Short- and medium-chain fatty acids in the energy metabolism – the cellular perspective. J Lipid Res. 57: 943-954.
Senior JR (editor). 1968. Medium Chain Triglycerides, Univ. of Pennsylvania Press., cited in: Sulkers EJ, The use of medium-chain triglycerides in preterm infants. Thesis, Erasmus University Rotterdam, 1993. ISBN 90-9006053-7
Sigalet DL, Winkelaar GB, Smith LJ (1997). Determination of the route of medium-chain and long-chain fatty acid absorption by direct measurement in the rat. JPEN J Parenter Enteral Nutr. 21(5):275-278.
[TMIC] The Metabolomics Innovation Center (2017). Metabocard for Dodecanoic acid. Canadian Institutes of Health Research, Alberta Innovates – Health Solutions, and The Metabolomics Innovation Centre (TMIC). http://www.hmdb.ca/metabolites/HMDB00638 (downloaded: June 11, 2017).
Toft-Petersen AP, Tilsted HH, Aarøe J, Rasmussen K, Christensen T, Griffin BA, Aardestrup IV, Andreasen A, Schmidt EB (2011). Small dense LDL particles – a predictor of coronary artery disease evaluated by invasive and CT-based techniques: a case-control study. Lipids in Health and Disease 2011, 10:21. http://www.lipidworld.com/content/10/1/21.
You YQN, Ling PR, Qu JZ, Bistrian BR (2008). Effects of Medium-Chain Triglycerides, Long-Chain Triglycerides, or 2-Monododecanoin on Fatty Acid Composition in the Portal Vein, Intestinal Lymph, and Systemic Circulation in Rats. JPEN J Parenter Enteral Nutr. 32(2): 169–175.
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Published
2017-12-19
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Dayrit, F. M. (2017). A Half-Truth is Not the Whole Truth: The AHA Position on Saturated Fat. KIMIKA, 28(2), 48–54. https://doi.org/10.26534/kimika.v28i2.48-54
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