Lipids and lipoproteins among Ethiopian immigrants: comparison of operations Solomon and Moses

Lipid and lipoprotein levels and body mass index were compared between two immigrations of Ethiopian Jews to Israel. Those who came in Operation Moses in 1984-85 were survivors of a long trek across hundreds of kilometers and severe food deprivation. Those who immigrated in Operation Solomon in 1991 were bussed from their villages to Addis Ababa where public health care and food were provided and a few months later they were airlifted to Israel. Total cholesterol among the Operation Solomon immigrants was higher than those obtained in Operation Moses in the different age-groups studied, in both sexes. High density lipoprotein-cholesterol was significantly higher and triglycerides lower in Operation Solomon compared with those of Operation Moses. Body mass indices of the Ethiopians in both immigrations were significantly lower than in the Israeli-born population but those who arrived in 1991 were heavier than those in the 1984-85 Operation Moses. The data on the Ethiopian Jews who arrived in Operation Solomon were not affected by the environmental hardships experienced by those who arrived in the 1984-85 Operation Moses. Therefore their exposure to a Western life-style, such as smoking, contraceptive use, change in diet and its effect on arteriosclerosis, diabetes mellitus and coronary heart disease will be of great interest.