TABLE 2.

Investigations reporting effects of alpha-linolenic acid (ALA) on primary cardiovascular end points

Reference	Population (sample size)	Follow-up, years	Main results
Hu et al (28)	76,283 women	10	Higher intake of ALA provided significant protection against fatal myocardial infarction
Albert et al (29)	76,763 women	18	Inverse association between ALA and the risk of sudden cardiac death. Highest intakes of ALA obtained a 40% lower risk for sudden cardiac death
Erkkilä et al (4)	415	5	The content of ALA in the cholesteryl ester fraction, but not in phospholipids, tended to be associated with a reduced risk of death in patients with CAD
Baylin et al (30)	964	–	Inverse relationship between ALA in adipose tissue and nonfatal acute myocardial infarction
Oda et al (31)	157	–	Serum levels of ALA, EPA, DHA and total omega-3 polyunsaturated fatty acid were significantly lower in patients with acute myocardial infarction compared with the control group
Djoussé et al (32)	2004 white men and women	–	ALA-rich diet is associated with a lower prevalence of calcified atherosclerotic plaque in the coronary arteries
Djoussé et al (33)	4584 white men and women	–	A higher intake of ALA was inversely related to the prevalence OR of CAD by up to 40%. The reduction in the risk of CAD appeared to be independent of fish consumption
Ascherio et al (34)	43,757 men	6	A 1% increase in ALA intake (as % of energy) resulted in a 40% lower risk of nonfatal CAD
Dolecek (35)	12,866 men	6–8	Association between a high intake of ALA and a decreased risk of death from cardiovascular disease, CAD and all causes of death combined

CAD Coronary artery disease; DHA Docosahexaenoic acid; EPA Eicosapentaenoic acid