Relationships between types of fat consumed and serum estrogen and androgen concentrations in Japanese men

The relationships between types of fat consumed and serum concentrations of estrone, estradiol, total and free testosterone, dihydrotestosterone, and sex hormone-binding globulin were examined in 69 Japanese men aged 43-88 ye ars. Diet was assessed by a semiquantitative food frequency questionnaire. Intake of saturated, monounsaturated, and polyunsaturated fats was inversel y correlated with serum total testosterone after controlling for age, total energy, body mass index, alcohol intake, and smoking status, but the corre lation was statistically significant only for polyunsaturated fat (r = -0.2 9, p = 0.02). Intakes of eicosapentanoic and docosahexaenoic acids, n-3 fat ty acids from fish, were significantly inversely correlated with total test osterone (r = -0.25, p = 0.04 and r = -0.32, p = 0.01, respectively). Serum estrone, estradiol, and free testosterone were not significantly correlate d with any type of fat studied. The correlations of total testosterone with n-3 fatty acids from fish remained significant after additional adjustment for the other categories of fat (r = -0.27, p = 0.03 for eicosapentanoic a cid and r = -0.32, p = 0.01 for docosahexaenoic acid), while the correlatio ns with saturated and monounsaturated fats became nearly null after the adj ustment.