Global survey of the omega-3 fatty acids, docosahexaenoic acid and eicosapentaenoic acid in the blood stream of healthy adults
Stark KD, Van Elswyk ME, Higgins MR, Weatherford CA, Salem N
Progress in lipid research · 359 citations
Review labels
Neutral facts our review recorded about how this study was done. They describe method, never whether we like the result.
How it was studied
- Design
- Systematic review (classified by our AI screen)
- Studied in
- People
- Main outcome
- No health outcome
- Lens
- Ancestral or evolutionary evidence
Who paid for it
- Funding
- Funding not disclosed
Publication
- Published
- 2016-05-22 · Prog Lipid Res · vol. 63 · pp. 132–152
- Publisher
- Elsevier BV
- Cited
- 529 citations · more than 100% of similar papers · 36.7× the field average
- Impact
- Top 10% most cited in its field
- References
- 604 works
- Access
- Open access (hybrid journal) · CC-BY
- Research areas
- Fatty Acid Research and Health · Lipid metabolism and biosynthesis · Alcohol Consumption and Health Effects
- Keywords
- Docosahexaenoic acid, Eicosapentaenoic acid, Polyunsaturated fatty acid, Blood lipids, Fatty acid, Whole blood, Chemistry, Internal medicine, Biology, Food science, Biochemistry, Physiology, Medicine, Cholesterol
- MeSH
- erythrocytes, humans, fatty acids, omega-3, docosahexaenoic acids, eicosapentaenoic acid, fatty acids, dietary supplements, databases, factual, biomarkers
5 authors
From CA, US, CH, NL
- Ken D. Stark · correspondingUniversity of Waterloo
- Mary E. Van Elswyk
- Marguerite HigginsClinical Research Associates
- Charli A WeatherfordWeatherford (Switzerland); Weatherford (United States)
- Norman SalemDSM (Netherlands); Nutrition 21 (United States)
Abstract
Studies reporting blood levels of the omega-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids, eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA) and docosahexaenoic acid (DHA), were systematically identified in order to create a global map identifying countries and regions with different blood levels. Included studies were those of healthy adults, published in 1980 or later. A total of 298 studies met all inclusion criteria. Studies reported fatty acids in various blood fractions including plasma total lipids (33%), plasma phospholipid (32%), erythrocytes (32%) and whole blood (3.0%). Fatty acid data from each blood fraction were converted to relative weight percentages (wt.%) and then assigned to one of four discrete ranges (high, moderate, low, very low) corresponding to wt.% EPA+DHA in erythrocyte equivalents. Regions with high EPA+DHA blood levels (>8%) included the Sea of Japan, Scandinavia, and areas with indigenous populations or populations not fully adapted to Westernized food habits. Very low blood levels (≤4%) were observed in North America, Central and South America, Europe, the Middle East, Southeast Asia, and Africa. The present review reveals considerable variability in blood levels of EPA+DHA and the very low to low range of blood EPA+DHA for most of the world may increase global risk for chronic disease.
Abstract via Europe PMC. Copyright remains with the authors or publisher (CC BY).
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