Higher docosahexaenoic acid proportions in blood are inversely associated with the prevalence of prediabetes

Evidence from the UK Biobank

authored by

Jan Philipp Schuchardt, Andreas Hahn, Theresa Greupner, Nathan L. Tintle, Jason Westra, William S. Harris

Abstract

Prediabetes and type 2 diabetes mellitus are growing global health concerns, predisposing individuals to various vascular complications. Lifestyle modifications, including dietary interventions, offer promising avenues for prevention and management. Using a multivariable-adjusted model, we analyzed the cross-sectional associations between plasma proportions (% of total fatty acids) of omega-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids (n3 PUFA, including total n3 PUFA, docosahexaenoic acid [DHA], non-DHA n3 PUFA), and glycated hemoglobin A1c (HbA1c) as well as the prevalence of prediabetes in a sample from the UK Biobank cohort. Our hypothesis was that proportions of n3 PUFA, especially DHA, would by inversely associated with the prediabetes prevalence. The sample (n = 92,762; 54.5% females) had an average age of 56 years and was overweight (mean body mass index = 27). The mean plasma DHA proportion in the sample was 2.03% (standard deviation [SD] = 0.67%), non-DHA n3 PUFA was 2.41% (SD = 1.02%) and total n3 PUFA was 4.43% (SD = 1.56%). Prediabetic individuals were identified by blood HbA1c proportions between 5.7% and 6.4% (39-46 mmol/mol) according to American Diabetes Association criteria. Each of the three n3 PUFA biomarkers was inversely associated with HbA1c proportions. In particular, DHA showed the strongest inverse association, with an OR of 0.62 (95% confidence intervals: 0.58, 0.67; P < .001) when comparing quintiles 5 to 1 in a fully adjusted model. These findings suggest a potential protective role of n3 PUFA, particularly DHA, in mitigating the risk of having prediabetes. Further prospective investigations are needed to clarify whether long-chain n3 PUFA could function as modifiable factors for prediabetes.

Organisation(s)

Institute of Food and One Health
Institute of Food Science and Human Nutrition
Nutrition Physiology and Human Nutrition Section

External Organisation(s)

Fatty Acid Research Institute (FARI)
University of Illinois at Chicago
University of South Dakota

Type

Article

Journal

Nutrition research

Volume

131

Pages

62-70

No. of pages

9

ISSN

0271-5317

Publication date

11.2024

Publication status

Published

Peer reviewed

Yes

ASJC Scopus subject areas

Endocrinology, Diabetes and Metabolism, Endocrinology, Nutrition and Dietetics

Sustainable Development Goals

SDG 3 - Good Health and Well-being

Electronic version(s)

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.nutres.2024.09.009 (Access: Open)