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Differences between polyunsaturated fatty acid status of non-institutionalised elderly women and younger controls: a
F Babin1, M Abderrazik, F Favier
1Laboratoire de Biologie et Biochimie des Lipides, Biochimie A, Institut de Biologie, Bd Henri IV, Montpellier, France.
Objective:
To evaluate the polyunsaturated fatty acid (PUFA) status in non-institutionalised elderly women and to detect a possible essential fatty acid bioconversion defect.
Design And Subjects:
The fatty acid composition of total plasma lipids, plasma triglycerides (TG), cholesterol esters (CE), phospholipids (PL), and erythrocytes was determined by capillary column gas-liquid chromatography in a sample of 200 non-institutionalised healthy elderly women over 75 years of age. The data were compared with those of a control group of 50 young female volunteers aged 20-48 y.
Results:
In elderly women, the n-6 series precursor, linoleic acid (18:2 n-6), was lower in TG and CE (P = 0.029 and 0.014, respectively). In CE, this fatty acid was highly correlated with vegetable and vegetal fat intakes (P < 0.0001), suggesting a lower dietary supply than in controls. Higher percentages of 16:1 n-7 were found in all the plasma lipid fractions in elderly women, especially in CE (P < 0.0001). The ratios 20:4 n-6/20:3 n-6 and 22:6 n-3/20:5 n-3 were significantly lower in PL from elderly women (P < 0.005 and P < 0.002, respectively), raising the question of the efficiency of the terminal steps of 20:4 n-6 and 22:6 n-3 biosynthesis. Dietary investigations in elderly women indicated that a high dietary protein intake via meat probably contributed to the supply of 20:4 n-6 and thus maintained the status of this fatty acid, despite the suspected altered biosynthesis.
Conclusion:
The PUFA status in the elderly women group could be more fragile and dependent on exogenous supply of long-chain PUFAs than previously suspected.