Table 3.
Characteristics of adult global consumption of key dietary fats and oils in 2010
| Characteristics of global consumption | Saturated fats (%E) | Omega 6 polyunsaturated fats (%E) | Trans fats (%E) | Dietary cholesterol (mg/day) | Seafood omega 3 fats (mg/day) | Plant omega 3 fats (mg/day) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Global mean consumption (95% UI) | 9.4 (9.2 to 9.5) | 5.9 (5.7 to 6.1) | 1.4 (1.36 to 1.44) | 228 (222 to 234) | 163 (154 to 172) | 1371 (1299 to 1465) |
| Range across 21 global regions (overall variation) | 4.3 to 23.5 (5.5-fold) | 2.5 to 8.5 (3.4-fold) | 0.6 to 2.9 (4.8-fold) | 139 to 328 (2.4-fold) | 13 to 710 (55-fold) | 302 to 3205 (10.6-fold) |
| Regions with highest levels (mean consumption) | Oceania (23.5), South East Asia (17.7), Central Europe (14.4), Australasia (13.6), Eastern Europe (13.0%) | East Asia (8.5), Eastern (8.0) and Central (7.9) Europe, Tropical Latin America (6.9), Central Asia (6.5), High-Income North America (6.5) | High-Income North America (2.9), Central (2.4), Tropical (1.8) and Andean Latin America (1.7), North Africa/Middle East (2.4) | Eastern Europe (328), High-Income Asia Pacific (326), Central Europe (326), High-Income North America (294), Tropical Latin America (291) | Southeast Asia (710), High-Income Asia Pacific (701), Western Europe (351), Oceania (315), Australasia (300) | East Asia (3205), Tropical (1742) and Southern (1288) Latin America, High-Income North America (1584), Caribbean (1331) |
| Regions with lowest levels (mean consumption) | South Asia (4.3), Andean Latin America (7.0), Caribbean (7.4), East Asia (7.4), Central Latin America (7.8) | Oceania (2.5), Southeast Asia (3.2), East (3.9), West (4.2), and Central (4.7) Sub-Saharan Africa, High-Income Asia Pacific (4.4) | Caribbean (0.6), East (0.8), Central (0.8), and West (0.9) Sub-Saharan Africa, Central (0.9) and Southeast (0.9) Asia, Oceania (1.0) | South Asia (139), Central (196), East (202), and West (205) Sub-Saharan Africa, Oceania (215) | Southern (13) and East (52) Sub-Saharan Africa, South (30), East (37), and Central (40) Asia | Southeast Asia (302), East Sub-Saharan Africa (394), Oceania (399), South Asia (514), Central Latin America (552) |
| Regions with greater statistical uncertainty | Oceania*, Eastern Europe*, Central† and West† Sub-Saharan Africa, Andean† and Southern† Latin America | South Asia†, Eastern Europe†, Southern† and Andean† Latin America, Oceania†, Central† and West† Sub-Saharan Africa, Caribbean† | Oceania†‡, East†‡, Central†‡ and Southern†‡ Sub-Saharan Africa | South Asia‡, Eastern Europe*, Oceania*, Central† and West† Sub-Saharan Africa, Andean Latin America† | Latin America†, Oceania† | South Asia†, Australasia†, Southern† Latin America, Oceania†, Eastern Europe† |
| Range across 187 countries (overall variation) | 2.3 to 27.5 (12.2-fold) | 1.2 to 12.5 (10.5-fold) | 0.2 to 6.5 (28.1-fold) | 97 to 440 (4.5-fold) | 5 to 3886 (840-fold) | 2 to 5542 (2731-fold) |
| Countries with highest levels (mean consumption) | Samoa (27.5), Kiribati (27.0), similar palm oil producing island nations (22.8 to 25.7), Sri Lanka (21.9), Romania (21.4), Malaysia (20.3) | Bulgaria (12.5), other Central European nations (8.9 to 9.9), Lebanon (9.9), Kazakhstan (8.9), Belarus (8.5) | Egypt (6.5), Pakistan (5.8), Canada (4.0), Mexico (3.6), Bahrain (3.2) | Romania (439), Algeria (402), Latvia (367), Belarus (352), Lithuania (348mg/day), Denmark (348), Paraguay (347), Japan (347), Hungary (337) | Maldives (3886), Barbados (1986), Seychelles (1291), Iceland (1229), Denmark (1225), Malaysia (988), Thailand (824), Japan (718), South Korea (708) | Jamaica (5542), China (3266), UK (2414), Tunisia (2215), Angola (2195), Canada (2085), Brazil (1747), Paraguay (1575), US (1527), Uruguay (1384), Argentina (1304) |
| Countries with lowest levels (mean consumption) | Bangladesh (2.3), Nepal (2.7), Bolivia (3.2), Bhutan (3.2), Pakistan (3.8) | Kiribati (1.2), Samoa (1.5), Vanuatu (1.5), Maldives (1.6), Sri Lanka (1.6), Solomon Islands (1.7) | Barbados (0.2), Haiti (0.4), other island nations in the Caribbean (0.5 to0.6), Ethiopia (0.6), Eritrea (0.6), other East Sub-Saharan African nations (0.6 to 0.7) | Bangladesh (97), Nepal (116), other South Asian nations (121 to 157), Rwanda (155), Burundi (163), Tajikistan (169), Ghana (169) | Zimbabwe (5), Lebanon (8), Occupied Palestinian Territory (8), Botswana (10), Guinea-Bissau (10) | Israel (2), Solomon Islands (102), Sri Lanka (106), Comoros (126), Saint Lucia (129), Philippines (131) |
| Western Europe mean consumption (95% UI) | 12.6 (12.3 to 13.9) | 5.2 (4.9 to 5.5) | 1.1 (1.1 to 1.2) | 290 (279 to 302) | 351 (314 to 393) | 1120 (1006 to 1270) |
| Western Europe range with country examples | 8.2 in Luxemburg and 9.0 in Malta to 14.7 in Belgium and 14.8 in Austria | 2.7 in Denmark and 2.9 in Iceland to 6.4 in Spain and 8.0 in Israel | 0.8 in Finland, Italy, and Malta to 1.6 in Switzerland and 2.3 in the Netherlands | 215 in Greece and 222 in Luxemburg to 333 in Austria and 348 in Denmark | 97 in Ireland and 180 in Netherlands to 1225 in Denmark and 1229 in Iceland | 2 in Israel and 300 in Denmark to 2014 in Finland and 2414 in the UK |
| US mean consumption (95% UI) | 11.8 (11.5 to 12.2) | 6.7 (6.5 to 7.0) | 2.8 (2.5 to 3.1) | 296 (284 to 306) | 141 (128 to 157) | 1527 (1456 to 1599) |
| No of countries achieving optimal mean intakes, corresponding adult population (% of global total) | <10%E§: 75 countries, 2.73bn people (61.8%) | ≥12%E§; 1 country, 6.1m people (0.1%) ≥5%E: 94 countries, 2.32bn people (52.4%) |
≤0.5%E: 12 countries, 24.43m people (0.6%) | <300 mg/day¶: 155 countries, 3.9bn people (87.6%) | ≥250 mg/day: 45 countries, 837.2m people (18.9%) | ≥0.5%E, or ≥1100 mg for a 2000 kcal/day diet**: 52 countries, 1.94bn people (43.9%) |
| No of countries not achieving optimal mean intakes, corresponding adult population (% of global total) | ≥10%E: 112 countries, 1.69bn people (38.2%) | <12%E: 186 countries, 4.42bn people (99.9%) <5%E: 93 countries, 2.1bn people (47.6%) |
>0.5%E: 175 countries, 4.42bn people (99.4%) >2.0%E: 12 countries, 643.7m people (14.6%) |
≥300 mg/day: 32 countries, 547.9m people (12.4%) | <250 mg/day: 142 countries, 3.58bn people (81.1%) <100 mg/day: 100 countries, 2.95bn people (66.8%) |
<0.5%E, or <1100 mg for a 2000 kcal/day diet: 135 countries, 2.48bn people (56.1%) <500 mg/day: 61 countries, 788.7m people (17.8%) |
UI=uncertainty interval. %E=percentage of total energy intake. bn=billion. m=million.
*Due to higher within-country statistical uncertainty in the raw data.
†Due to limited country-specific raw data on consumption levels.
‡Due to greater variation in consumption levels between countries in the region.
§Based on optimal consumption levels for polyunsaturated fats as a replacement for saturated fats.
¶We did not identify sufficient evidence to set a specific optimal intake level for preventing chronic diseases. The value here is based on recommended consumption levels in the 2010 Dietary Guidelines for Americans.7
**We did not identify sufficient evidence to set a specific optimal intake level for preventing chronic diseases. The value here is based on World Health Organization guidelines for adequate intakes.6