title: Associations of Plasma Phospholipid SFAs with Total and Cause-Specific Mortality in Older Adults Differ According to SFA Chain Length.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Not much is known about the relations of circulating saturated fatty acids (SFAs), which are influenced by both metabolic and dietary determinants, with total and cause-specific mortality.
  
  
  OBJECTIVE
  We examined the associations of plasma phospholipid SFAs with total and cause-specific mortality among 3941 older adults from the Cardiovascular Health Study, a population-based prospective study of adults aged ≥65 y who were followed from 1992 through 2011.
  
  
  METHODS
  The relations of total and cause-specific mortality with plasma phospholipid palmitic acid (16:0), stearic acid (18:0), arachidic acid (20:0), behenic acid (22:0), and lignoceric acid (24:0) were assessed using Cox proportional hazards models.
  
  
  RESULTS
  During 45,450 person-years of follow-up, 3134 deaths occurred. Higher concentrations of the plasma phospholipid SFAs 18:0, 22:0, and 24:0 were associated with a lower risk of total mortality [multivariable-adjusted HRs (95% CIs)] for the top compared with the bottom quintile: 0.85 (0.75, 0.95) for 18:0; 0.85 (0.75, 0.95) for 22:0; and 0.80 (0.71, 0.90) for 24:0. In contrast, plasma 16:0 concentrations in the highest quintile were associated with a higher risk of total mortality compared with concentrations in the lowest quintile [1.25 (1.11, 1.41)]. We also found no association of plasma phospholipid 20:0 with total mortality.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  These findings suggest that the associations of plasma phospholipid SFAs with the risk of death differ according to SFA chain length and support future studies to better characterize the determinants of circulating SFAs and to explore the mechanisms underlying these relations.
authors.affiliation: Cardiovascular Health Research Unit, Epidemiology, and amfretts@uw.edu.
authors.forename: Amanda M
authors.initials: AM
authors.lastname: Fretts
authors.affiliation: Friedman School of Nutrition Science and Policy, Tufts University, Boston, MA.
authors.forename: Dariush
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Mozaffarian
authors.affiliation: New York Academy of Medicine, New York, NY;
authors.forename: David S
authors.initials: DS
authors.lastname: Siscovick
authors.affiliation: Department of Internal Medicine, University of New Mexico, Albuquerque, NM;
authors.forename: Irena B
authors.initials: IB
authors.lastname: King
authors.affiliation: Cardiovascular Health Research Unit, Biostatistics.
authors.forename: Barbara
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: McKnight
authors.affiliation: Cardiovascular Health Research Unit, Departments of Medicine, Epidemiology, and Health Services, University of Washington, Seattle, WA; Group Health Research Institute, Group Health Cooperative, Seattle, WA;
authors.forename: Bruce M
authors.initials: BM
authors.lastname: Psaty
authors.affiliation: Departments of Epidemiology, Nutrition, Harvard School of Public Health, and.
authors.forename: Eric B
authors.initials: EB
authors.lastname: Rimm
authors.affiliation: Cardiovascular Health Research Unit, Departments of Medicine.
authors.forename: Colleen
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Sitlani
authors.affiliation: Nutrition, Harvard School of Public Health, and.
authors.forename: Frank M
authors.initials: FM
authors.lastname: Sacks
authors.affiliation: Public Health Sciences Division, Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center, Seattle, WA;
authors.forename: Xiaoling
authors.initials: X
authors.lastname: Song
authors.affiliation: Cardiovascular Health Research Unit, Departments of Medicine.
authors.forename: Nona
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Sotoodehnia
authors.affiliation: Departments of Epidemiology, Biostatistics, and.
authors.forename: Donna
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Spiegelman
authors.affiliation: Cardiovascular Health Research Unit, Departments of Medicine.
authors.forename: Rozenn N
authors.initials: RN
authors.lastname: Lemaitre
mesh_terms: D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D002423:Cause of Death; D004032:Diet; D004041:Dietary Fats / Q000097:blood; D004537:Eicosanoic Acids / Q000097:blood; D005227:Fatty Acids / Q000097:blood* / Q000737:chemistry; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D009026:Mortality; D019308:Palmitic Acid / Q000097:blood; D010743:Phospholipids / Q000097:blood* / Q000737:chemistry; D011446:Prospective Studies; D012307:Risk Factors; D013229:Stearic Acids / Q000097:blood
chemical_list: D004041:Dietary Fats; D004537:Eicosanoic Acids; D005227:Fatty Acids; D010743:Phospholipids; D013229:Stearic Acids; D019308:Palmitic Acid; C031183:stearic acid; C007547:behenic acid; C094477:arachidic acid; C010210:lignoceric acid
keywords: SFAs; elderly; mortality; plasma phospholipid FAs; saturated fat