American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, Vol 51, 809-814, Copyright © 1990 by The American Society for Clinical Nutrition, Inc

ORIGINAL RESEARCH COMMUNICATIONS

n-3 fatty acids from vegetable oils

JE Hunter
Procter & Gamble Company, Winton Hill Technical Center, Cincinnati, OH 45224-1703.

Principal food sources of the n-3 fatty acid alpha-linolenic acid are salad and cooking oil, salad dressing, shortening, margarine, and food- service fat and oil products made from canola oil or soybean oil. Using food production data provided by US trade associations and by Statistics Canada, I estimated the per capita availability of alpha- linolenic acid from vegetable-oil products in the United States to be approximately 1.2 g/d and in Canada, approximately 2 g/d. The higher alpha-linolenic acid availability in Canada is largely accounted for by widespread use of canola oil there. Considering also contributions to dietary alpha-linolenic acid of other foods such as nuts, dairy products, and vegetables, it would appear that total intake of alpha- linolenic acid in US and Canadian diets adequately exceeds the reported nutritional requirement. Emerging research has suggested possible health benefits associated with modest increases in dietary alpha- linolenic acid, including reduced blood-clotting tendency and reduced blood pressure.

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