The role of essential fatty acids and prostaglandins

Abstract

The FAO/WHO Rome Report recommended an increase in the consumption of fat in countries where malnutrition is endemic; for maintenance, 3% of the dietary energy as essential fatty acids (EFA) may be adequate; in pregnancy and lactation an additional 1·5 to 2·4% energy as EFA is needed. For populations at high risk for atherosclerosis and coronary heart disease (CHD) the recommendations were to decrease saturated fat in particular and increase EFA intake in the diet, reduce sugar, alcohol and cholesterol. These recommendations were similar to those of the Royal College of Physicians but the report went further by saying that EFA loss through industrial hydrogenation should be minimized and associated nutrients such as vitamin E and carotene should be restored if lost in processing. In terms of production, they asked for an increase in edible plant oils in developing countries and requested that intensive animal feeding and breeding should be corrected to avoid the excess accumulation of saturated fats. In addition, the Rome Report requested meaningful labelling of amounts and quality of fat in foods containing added fats. The basic aims of the Report were to state the position of lipid nutrition. The issue of the nutrient correction in terms of CHD cannot properly be discussed without taking into account the essential components which are needed for the integrity and development of the vascular system. Introduction In 1977 an expert consultation was called by the WHO and the FAO in Rome, to discuss the role of dietary fats in human nutrition (FAO/WHO, 1978). A principal reason for the committee was the omission of the question of essential fatty acids (EFAs) by most previous medical and scientific reports. The debate on diet and heart disease had concerned those nutrients or those components of the diet which in a nutritional context are not essential, i.e. saturated fats, cholesterol, sugar and triglyerides. However, the omission of EFAs was obvious by 1975/1976, when the FAO/WHO arranged the expert consultation on dietary fats. It did not really make sense to discuss coronary heart disease and nutrition whilst omitting those nutrients essential for the growth and development of the vascular system and which are implicated in the regulation of platelet aggregation and thrombosis. Some of the main points of the FAO/WHO Rome Report (FAO/WHO, 1978) will now be reviewed, especially those dealing with EFAs, and recent developments will be introduced. The Rome Report contains over 250 references and only some recent and key papers will be noted in this paper. The report included the following chapters: (1) Definitions; (2) Fat as a source of energy; (3) Use of fat in adult and child feeding; (4) Essential fatty acids; (5) Cardiovascular disease; (6) Processing; (7) Special considerations (such as erucic acid); (8) Plant and animal breeding and management and its effect on food quality and quantity. © 1980 The Fellowship of Postgraduate Medicine.