Total fat intake is associated with decreased mortality in Japanese men but not in women.
Dietary guidelines generally recommend avoiding a high-fat diet. However, the relationship between fat subtypes and mortality remains unclear especially in a population with a relatively low intake of fat. We aimed to prospectively examine the relationship between dietary fat intake and all-cause and cause-specific mortality in a Japanese community. In 1992, a total of 28,356 residents of Takayama, Japan, without cancer, stroke, or coronary heart disease, responded to a validated 169-item FFQ. We identified 4616 deaths during a 16-y follow-up. The HR of mortality according to the percentage of energy from the total and subtypes of fat when substituted for an isoenergic quantity of carbohydrate was calculated after controlling for potential confounders. A high intake of total fat and PUFA was associated with a decrease in all-cause mortality in men; the HR for the highest compared with the lowest quintile were 0.83 (95% CI: 0.70, 0.99; P-trend = 0.048) for total fat and 0.77 (95% CI: 0.62, 0.95; P-trend = 0.05) for PUFA. Both fats were associated with a decrease in mortality from cancer and diseases other than cardiovascular disease. In women, a higher SFA intake was associated with higher all-cause mortality [HR = 1.22 (95% CI: 0.99, 1.49; P-trend = 0.03)]. A favorable effect was suggested for total fat and PUFA intakes on mortality in men except for that from cardiovascular disease, whereas increased SFA intake may be associated with adverse health consequences in women.
Department of Epidemiology and Preventive Medicine, Gifu University Graduate School of Medicine, Gifu, Japan. chisato@gifu-u.ac.jp
Chisato
C
Nagata
Kozue
K
Nakamura
Keiko
K
Wada
Shino
S
Oba
Michiko
M
Tsuji
Yuya
Y
Tamai
Toshiaki
T
Kawachi
D000328:Adult; D000428:Alcohol Drinking / Q000208:ethnology; D044466:Asian People / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D002318:Cardiovascular Diseases / Q000208:ethnology / Q000401:mortality*; D015331:Cohort Studies; D004040:Dietary Carbohydrates / Q000008:administration & dosage; D004041:Dietary Fats / Q000008:administration & dosage*; D005231:Fatty Acids, Unsaturated / Q000008:administration & dosage; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007564:Japan / Q000453:epidemiology; D008136:Longevity / Q000502:physiology; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009026:Mortality / Q000208:ethnology*; D009369:Neoplasms / Q000208:ethnology / Q000401:mortality*; D009749:Nutrition Surveys / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D012307:Risk Factors; D012727:Sex Characteristics; D017678:Sex Distribution
D004040:Dietary Carbohydrates; D004041:Dietary Fats; D005231:Fatty Acids, Unsaturated