25186946

PMC4216604

BACKGROUND

Previous epidemiological studies have generated inconsistent results regarding the associations between dietary fat intakes and risk for Parkinson’s disease (PD). We therefore prospectively examined these associations in the NIH-AARP Diet and Health Study.

METHODS

A 124-item food frequency questionnaire was administered at baseline in 1995–1996, and PD diagnosis was self-reported at the follow-up survey in 2004–2006. A total of 1,087 cases with a PD diagnosis between 2000 and 2006 and 299,617 controls were included in the analyses.

RESULTS

Overall, intakes of fats and other macronutrients were not associated with PD risk. However, we found a weak positive association between n-6 polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFA) and the risk for PD. After adjusting for potential confounders, the odds ratio (OR) and 95% confidence interval (CI) between extreme quintiles of n-6 PUFA intake was 1.23 (95% CI=1.02–1.49, P for trend=0.02). A similar association was observed for the intake of linoleic acid. Results were similar among men and among women.

CONCLUSIONS

Our study suggests that fat intake in general is not related to the risk for PD. The weak positive association between intake of n-6 PUFA and PD risk needs further investigation.

CDC Public Access

T42OH00867302/OH/NIOSH CDC HHS/United States
Z01 ES101986-02/Intramural NIH HHS/United States
Z01-CP010196-02/CP/NCI NIH HHS/United States
Z01-ES-101986/ES/NIEHS NIH HHS/United States