Total fat and fatty acid intakes and food sources in Mediterranean older adults requires education to improve health

Abstract

The proportion of fat has increased at the expense of carbohydrates in the past years, and we aimed to assess total fat and fatty acids intake and their food sources among Mediterranean older adults and compare them to national and international recommendations. This study was conducted in 211 participants to determine lipid and fatty acid intake using a Spanish food database. The mean daily intake of lipids was 68.6g/d (standard deviation [SD]: 24.6; 34.4%, SD: 7.0 of total energy consumed). Men, younger participants, and those with higher education ingested more lipids than their peers. Fatty acids were ingested as follows (expressed as percentage of total energy intake): monounsaturated fatty acids (MUFA) (16.7%, SD: 4.1), saturated fatty acids (SFA) (9.6%, SD: 2.6), and polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFA) (5.0%, SD: 1.7). Oils and seeds were the highest contributors in the intake of lipids (38.8%, SD: 16.0), MUFA (53.9%, SD: 18.7), and PUFA (33.0%, SD: 16.4). The total fat intake (34.4%, SD: 7.0) was within the range of International and Spanish recommendations among Mediterranean older adults; however, the intake of fatty acids did not abide by the international (PUFA) and Spanish recommendations (SFA, MUFA). α-Linoleic acid, eicosapentaenoic acid, and docosahexaenoic acid intake were lower than recommendations, but cholesterol intake (243.9mg, SD: 140.4) was within the range of recommendations. Therefore, public health campaigns are needed to encourage older adults to decrease SFA intake and increase adherence to the Mediterranean diet pattern for a better health.