The associations of a marine diet with plasma lipids, blood glucose, blood pressure and obesity among the inuit in Greenland

• Published in: European Journal of Clinical Nutrition
• Main Authors: Bjerregaard, P, Pedersen, H S, Mulvad, G
• Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
• Language: English
• Published: 2000
• Subjects: Adolescent; Adult; Aged; 80 and over; Animals; Blood Glucose; Blood Pressure; Cardiovascular Diseases; Diet; Fatty Acids; Omega-3; Female; Greenland; Humans; Inuits; Lipids; Male; Middle Aged; Obesity; Risk Factors; Seals; Earless; inuit; inuits
• Online Access: https://portal.findresearcher.sdu.dk/da/publications/915ae481-6f31-4473-aa09-a32cf0ae7813; https://doi.org/10.1038/sj.ejcn.1601088

OBJECTIVE: To analyse the associations between the intake of fish and marine mammals and risk factors for cardiovascular disease, ie lipid profile, fasting blood glucose, blood pressure and obesity, in a population whose average consumption of n-3 fatty acids is high compared with Western countries. DESIGN: Information was obtained from a population survey in Greenland: interview data, clinical data and fasting blood samples were obtained from a random sample of Inuit from three towns and four villages. SUBJECTS: Two-hundred and fifty-nine adult Inuit (74% of the sample). RESULTS: Marine diet was positively associated with serum high-density lipoprotein (HDL) and blood glucose and inversely with very-low-density lipoprotein (VLDL) and triglyceride. Association with low-density lipoprotein (LDL), diastolic and systolic blood pressure, waist-hip ratio and body mass index were inconsistent and not statistically significant. The pattern was similar within groups with low, medium and high consumption of marine food. CONCLUSIONS: There are statistically significant associations between the consumption of marine food and certain lipid fractions in the blood also in this population with a very high average intake of marine food. The observation that blood glucose is positively associated with marine diet in a population survey is new and should be repeated. There was good agreement between the results for the reported consumption of seal and those for the biomarkers. SPONSORSHIP: The study was financially supported by the Greenland Home Rule, Directorate of Health and Research, the Commission for Scientific Research in Greenland, and the Danish Medical Research Council.