Introduction
The
purpose of this study was to research the role in which essential
fatty acids have in bone accumulation as well as the attainment of
peak bone mass in young men. Due to the limited evidence regarding
any influence of the nutritional intake of essential fatty acids and
the effect it has on bone health this study was conducted.
Polyunsaturated essential fatty acids have been suggest to influence
bone modeling and growth in humans although the evidence is lacking,
and therefore this study is an attempt to gather the data needed to
support that claim.
Method
The
methods used to conduct the study were based on human subjects in
which seventy-eight (78) healthy men with an average age of 16.7
years old were tested. The study measured the bone mineral density of
the male's total body, hip, and spine from the average age of 16.7
years, and at 22 as well as 24 years of age. The essential fatty acid
concentrations were measured in the phospholipid fraction in serum at
22 years if age. This study was observational as the different bone
mineral densities were measured from the male's different age groups
and then compared by the concentration of essential fatty acids
found. The results were found by comparing the different ranges of
bone mineral densities with the different concentrations of essential
fatty acids based on the different age groups to find positive or
negative correlations.
Results
The
results concluded that the concentrations of n−3 essential fatty
acids were positively associated with total BMD (r=
0.27,P=
0.02) and spine BMD (r=
0.25,P=
0.02) at 22 y of age. A positive correlation between n−3 essential
fatty acid concentrations and the changes in BMD at the spine (r=
0.26,P=
0.02) was found between 16 and 22 y of age. Concentrations of
docosahexaenoic acid (DHA, 22:6n−3) were positively associated with
total BMD (r=
0.32,P=
0.004) and BMD at the spine (r=
0.30,P=
0.008) at 22 y of age. A positive correlation was also found between
DHA concentrations and the changes in BMD at the spine (r=
0.26,P=
0.02) between 16 and 22 y of age. The end results of the study showed
that the n-3 fatty acids, mostly DHA, are positively associated with
bone mineral accrual and therefore with peak bone mineral density in
young men.
Commentary
I
think that this study was very interesting and important to the
research regarding essential fatty acids and the effect they have on
bone remodeling and bone mineral density. Due to the very limited
data and research around the topic it was a very giant step in
helping humans understand how our bodies are affected by these fatty
acids and if it is a positive or negative relationship. I'd say that
based off of the results it is hard to not agree with their
conclusions as the study was mostly observational, and because the
conclusion correlates with the results. The information seems
relevant but I am a little skeptical because the bone mineral density
may be largely affected by genetics and this may have skewed the
data, but I think the sample pool was large enough that this isn't
what happened. I think that a larger population size would only be beneficial and should be undergone in the future to confirm the
results of this study.
Citations
Nordström,
Anna, Peter Nordström, and Magnus Högström. "n−3 Fatty
acids are positively associated with peak bone mineral density and
bone accrual in healthy men: the NO2 Study ."The
American Journal of Clinical Nutrition.
American Society for Clinical Nutrition, 19 June 2006. Web. 26 Oct.
2012. <http://ajcn.nutrition.org/content/85/3/80>
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