(P14-054-23) Increased Polyunsaturated Fatty Acid (PUFA) Intake Is Not Associated With Lower HbA1c Levels in U.S. Adults With Non-Insulin Dependent Diabetes Ages 19–50

Objectives: To examine if level of PUFA intake showed a linear relationship with glycemic control assessed via HbA1c for U.S. adults ages 19-50 with non-insulin-dependent diabetes.

Methods: Data from participants from the 24-h dietary recall portion of the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES 2017-2018) was used. Inclusion criteria were age 19-50 years, confirmed diabetes diagnosis, no reported insulin or other diabetes medication use with no missing data for independent and dependent variables. Data was assessed for normality using the Kolmogorov-Smirnov test. Mean and standard deviations were calculated to inform about descriptive data, independent t-tests were run to assess for sex differences in total PUFA intake and HbA1c levels in this group. A simple linear regression was used to determine whether a linear relationship between total PUFA intake and HbA1c values existed (SPSS version 28, IBM, USA; ⍺ = 0.05).

Results: Of 9254 NHANES 2017-2018 participants, 41 (0.4%, 18 men, 23 women) met inclusion criteria. Mean age was 44.73 ± 4.73 years. Mean HbA1c was 7.45% ± 1.47 (men: 7.90% ± 1.79, women 7.10% ± 1.09; p=0.086) while total PUFA intake was 22.03g ± 12.20 (men: 24.45g ± 13.09, women: 20.14g ± 11.39; p=0.267), respectively. There was no linear relationship between total PUFA intake and HbA1c levels (F_(1,39)=0.448, p=.507, R²:0.011, adj. R²:-0.014).

Conclusions: Glycemic control and reported PUFA intake did not differ across sex in the assessed age group. PUFA intake showed no significant explanatory value in predicting HbA1c values in this cross-sectional analysis. Randomized clinical trials allowing for controlled PUFA intake dosing may be more suited to assess PUFA benefits on glycemic control.

Funding Sources: Judy Waller Travel Award