Italians consume few omega-3-rich foods: health at risk
The health of a portion of Italians is at risk due to suboptimal intake of marine Omega-3s. Increasing consumption of foods rich in EPA and DHA is a simple and effective strategy to reduce the danger associated with several chronic diseases, particularly cardiovascular diseases.
We are certainly not the worst consumers of Omega 3-rich foods in the world, but we could definitely do better. That's what emerges from a systematic analysis published in The British Medical Journal by a group of researchers coordinated by Dariush Mozaffarian, an expert at the Harvard School of Public Health (Boston, United States), according to which, in total, Italians consume an average of 994 mg per day of these precious polyunsaturated fats; one problem, however, there is, and it's not a small one: only less than a third of this daily intake corresponds to Omega 3s of marine origin, that is, those really needed by the human body.
In light of the fact that, in Italy, deaths due to coronary dysfunction attributable to dietary deficiency of these Omega 3s (EPA - eicosapentaenoic acid - and DHA - docosahexaenoic acid) are about 31 per 100,000 people, the results of this analysis make one think about whether we, too, are in that group of inhabitants of the Boot who, by keeping below the average daily intake of marine-derived Omega 3s, see their health at risk.
Proper nutrition is essential for good health
Mozaffarian and collaborators included in their analysis data on consumption of food-derived fats and oils in 1990 and 2010, collected during 266 nationwide surveys. Their work represents just one part of the Global Burden of Diseases, Injuries, and Risk Factors Study (GBD), a worldwide report on disease and mortality that found, more broadly, that poor nutrition is a major risk factor for disease and disability worldwide.
The GBD is the most authoritative study on the determinants of poor health status. The data published in 2013(Global Burden of Disease Study 2013, GBD 2013) is an update of the previous version (the Global Burden of Disease Study 2010)-the largest systematic study ever conducted for the purpose of describing the distribution and possible causes of a wide range of diseases, injuries and their risk factors on a global scale.
By 2020, it is estimated that nearly 75 percent of all deaths and 60 percent of all health problems worldwide will be attributable to chronic diseases-including cardiovascular disease, type 2 diabetes, obesity, and cancer-with the greatest impact in low- and middle-income countries. Factors contributing to the onset of these diseases-such as high blood pressure, excess blood cholesterol, high blood sugar, and a body mass index in the ranges of overweight and obesity-are largelydiet-dependent. The figure, alarming in itself, hides a positive note: diet is, in fact, a modifiable factor. This correlation of it with in risk factors for chronic diseases makes it the main risk factor for poor health on which it is possible to actively act.
In this regard, several epidemiological and clinical studies have unveiled how the consumption of dietary fats and oils is associated with risks on the one hand but also with health benefits on the other; both the amount and the type of fats consumed are crucial. At present, however, data on the distribution of such consumption in different countries around the globe are still scarce and unrepresentative, as is also the understanding of global dietary patterns that take into account heterogeneity by country, age, gender and time.
Italy: deaths from omega-3 deficiency have decreased but consumption of marine sources is low
Focusing on consumption of different sources of fat worldwide in 2010, Boston researchers identified 16 groups of adults, grouped by gender and age. The analysis looked more specifically atintakes of saturated fatty acids, polyunsaturated fatty acids, cholesterol, Omega 6 and Omega 3 taken from fish or plant sources. In the case of Omega 3, data on European citizens' consumption were collected and simplified by Adam Ismail, executive director of the GOED(Global Organization for EPA and DHA Omega-3), a nonprofit association that promotes the consumption of adequate levels of Omega-3s and of which U.G.A. is a member. Nutraceuticals.
What emerged is a certain heterogeneity among different nations. In countries such as France, Spain, Portugal, and even more so Iceland, the average dailyintake of marine-derived Omega 3 is well above 250 mg, the amount recommended by the European Food Safety Authority (Efsa) for maintaining normal heart function. In other nations, including the Netherlands, Ireland, Greece and several Eastern European countries, intakes are still far from that amount.Italy is in a borderline situation: average consumption is 281 mg of Omega 3 of marine origin, more precisely between 213 and 358 mg per day. In contrast, the intake of Omega 3 of plant origin is higher: in fact, the daily average is as much as 713 mg (346 to 1257 mg per day).
Two critical issues emerge from these data. With a daily consumption varying between 213 and 358 mg, there are those in Italy who do not reach the 250 mg of EPA + DHA indicated by Efsa for heart wellness and considered by the Italian Society of Human Nutrition (SINU) the minimum necessary intake at any age. In addition, a preference for plant sources of Omega 3 is inferred; unfortunately, however, the human body is unable to efficiently use the Omega 3 present in plants, which do not correspond to the biologically active forms EPA and DHA but to their precursor, alpha-linolenic acid(ALA). Suffice it to say that this is precisely why Omega 3s of marine origin are considered essential fats (i.e., to be taken preformed) in the same way as ALA, which cannot be synthesized by human cells in any way.
Fortunately, in Italy, deaths from coronary dysfunction attributable to EPA and DHA deficiency in the diet were found to be about 31 per 100,000 people, for a total of 18,800 deaths, a rather low value when compared with that of nations such as Lithuania, Belarus and Hungary. Another important parameter taken into consideration is the trend of these deaths from 1990 to 2010; in the Belpaese country, mortality went from about 36,800 per 100,000 people in 1990, to 31,500 in 2010, a reduction of about 5 deaths per 100,000 in 20 years. Optimizing the intake of EPA and DHA could help to further reduce deaths from cardiovascular problems attributable to nutritional deficiencies.
Some data on global habits
The data published by Mozaffarian and collaborators also brought out other interesting information; globally, they showed that 18.9 percent of the population takes in an optimal daily amount of Omega-3 from fish and that theintake of EPA and DHA, along with that from Omega-6 polyunsaturated fatty acids, has increased over the past 20 years, while that of saturated fat and cholesterol has remained stable.
It also appears that between men and women there are not too many differences in EPA and DHA consumption, which was, however, higher in adults than in younger people. Among different nations, however, the population's preferred sources of Omega-3 vary.
Knowing food consumption is important to promote health
The data obtained show that in Italy the average daily intake of Omega-3 is supported mainly by plant-based sources and that in 20 years the number of deaths from coronary heart disease attributable to EPA and DHA deficiency has decreased but not by much, especially compared with the milestones achieved by Northern European countries.
Knowing food consumption in our own and other countries makes it possible to assess the impact that nutrients have on health and to evaluate specific interventions and policies to reduce the risk of chronic diseases. In the specific case of fats, promoting the consumption of foods that contain EPA and DHA (such as fatty fish-for example, salmon, tuna, sardines, sardines, and anchovies), substituting it at least in part for foods high in saturated fats (such as meats and cheeses) and preferring them, as a source of Omega 3, over plant-based sources (such as nuts and flaxseeds) can help protect cardiovascular health.
Sources:
Micha R et al. Global, regional, and national consumption levels of dietary fats and oils in 1990 and 2010: a systematic analysis including 266 country-specific nutrition surveys. BMJ 2014;348:g2272 doi: 10.1136/bmj.g2272
Corrections. Global, regional, and national consumption levels of dietary fats and oils in 1990 and 2010: a systematic analysis including 266 country-specific nutrition surveys. BMJ 2015;350:h1702. doi: doi: 10.1136/bmj.h1702
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