Historical Event
Date:
January 4, 1909
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The estimated per capita consumption of soybean oil increased >1000-fold from 1909 to 1999. The availability of linoleic acid (LA) increased from 2.79% to 7.21% of energy (P < 0.000001), whereas the availability of α-linolenic acid (ALA) increased from 0.39% to 0.72% of energy by using 1909-C modeling.
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Changes in consumption of omega-3 and omega-6 fatty acids in the United States during the 20th century
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Abstract
Background: The consumption of omega-3 (n-3) and omega-6 (n-6) essential fatty acids in Western diets is thought to have changed markedly during the 20th century.
Objective: We sought to quantify changes in the apparent consumption of essential fatty acids in the United States from 1909 to 1999.
Design: We calculated the estimated per capita consumption of food commodities and availability of essential fatty acids from 373 food commodities by using economic disappearance data for each year from 1909 to 1999. Nutrient compositions for 1909 were modeled by using current foods (1909-C) and foods produced by traditional early 20th century practices (1909-T).
Results: The estimated per capita consumption of soybean oil increased >1000-fold from 1909 to 1999. The availability of linoleic acid (LA) increased from 2.79% to 7.21% of energy (P < 0.000001), whereas the availability of α-linolenic acid (ALA) increased from 0.39% to 0.72% of energy by using 1909-C modeling. By using 1909-T modeling, LA was 2.23% of energy, and ALA was 0.35% of energy. The ratio of LA to ALA increased from 6.4 in 1909 to 10.0 in 1999. The 1909-T but not the 1909-C data showed substantial declines in dietary availability (percentage of energy) of n-6 arachidonic acid, eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA), and docosahexaenoic acid (DHA). Predicted net effects of these dietary changes included declines in tissue n--3 highly unsaturated fatty acid status (36.81%, 1909-T; 31.28%, 1909-C; 22.95%, 1999) and declines in the estimated omega-3 index (8.28, 1909-T; 6.51, 1909-C; 3.84, 1999).
Conclusion: The apparent increased consumption of LA, which was primarily from soybean oil, has likely decreased tissue concentrations of EPA and DHA during the 20th century.
Topics: (click image to open)
Diseases of Civilization | Common diseases that appear in civilization - such as cancer, diabetes, IBS, gout, heart disease | |
Civilized Food | When the civilized food of intruding Europeans is introduced to native indigenous lands changing a nutritional revolution for the worse. This typically means white flour, sugar, corn, rice, cooking seed oils, and alcohol. | |
Big Vegetable Oil | The Vegetable Oil industry is huge and has been growing since the late 19th century. They likely dictate dietary advice to eat highly linoleic diets, while genetically modifying seeds to contain less LA due to health dangers. | |
Soy | ||
Seed Oils |