RELATIONSHIPS BETWEEN DIETARY-FAT, BODY-FAT, AND SERUM-LIPID PROFILE IN PREPUBERTAL CHILDREN

Objective: The purpose of the study was to test the hypothesis that di etary fat components were associated with the serum lipid profile inde pendent of ethnicity, body fat, and fat distribution in prepubertal ch ildren. Research Methods and Procedures: Sixty-six children (45 Africa n American and 21 Caucasian), aged from 4 to 10 years, were recruited into the study. Dietary total fat, saturated fat, monounsaturated fat, and polyunsaturated fat were estimated by averaging two 24-hour diet recalls. Fasting serum triacylglycerol, total cholesterol, and high-de nsity lipoprotein cholesterol were analyzed, and low-density lipoprote in cholesterol (LDL-C) was calculated by the method of Friedewald. Bod y composition and fat distribution were measured by dual energy X-ray absorptiometry and computed tomography. Results: Children in both ethn ic groups tended to overreport their dietary intake relative to total energy expenditure by 18%. African American children consumed more ene rgy from total fat (35.3% vs. 31.5%, p<0.05), saturated fat (13.7% vs 12.2%, p<0.05), protein (16.4% vs. 13.2%, p=0.02), and less from carbo hydrate (48% vs. 57.1%, p<0.01) than Caucasian children. There was no significant correlation between dietary fat and either serum lipids or body fat indices after adjusting for nonfat energy intake and total l ean tissue mass. Total body fat (r=0.32), subcutaneously abdominal adi pose tissue abdominal adipose tissue (r=0.39), and intra-abdominal adi pose tissue (r=0.42) were positively related to serum triacylglycerol; these associations remained significant in a multiple linear regressi on model in which body fat indices were adjusted for ethnicity, total lean tissue, dietary total fat, and nonfat intake. Discussion: Our res ults do not support a link between dietary fat and serum lipids; inste ad, our data suggest that body fat may play a more important role than dietary fat in the course of cardiovascular disease development in pr epubertal children.