Table 1. Characteristics of the three included studies reporting the association of palm oil consumption and CHD risk.
| Author (Year) | Country | Years of study | Population studied | Exposure | Disease ascertainment | Disease outcome | Sample size: cases/ control | Usage of palm oil for cooking | OR (95%CI) | Covariate adjustments |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Kabagambe (2003) [19] | Costa Rica | 1995–1998 | Adult Hispanic Americans of Mestizo background, living in Costa Rica | Total SFA, Palmitic acid, stearic acid, lauric acid, myristic acid | MI diagnosed according to the WHO criteria a | Non-fatal first acute MI | 485/ 508 | 36% | Total SFAb: 3.00 (1.54, 5.84) | Smoking status, alcohol intake, diabetes, hypertension, angina, waist-to-hip ratio, physical activity, SES, years in current residence, dietary fibre intake, total energy, cholesterol, per cent energy from protein, MUFA, PUFA and trans-fat |
| Palmitic acidb: 2.76 (1.39, 5.47) | ||||||||||
| Stearic acidb: 3.96 (1.95, 8.01) | ||||||||||
| Fried foods b: 1.06 (0.59, 1.91) | ||||||||||
| Meat and pork b: 1.69 (0.93, 3.06) | ||||||||||
| Kabagambe (2005) [20] | Costa Rica | 1995–2004 | Adult Hispanic Americans of Mestizo background, living in Costa Rica | Type of vegetable oil: palm oil, soybean, other oilsc | MI diagnosed according to the WHO criteria | Non-fatal first acute MI | 2111/ 2111 | 30% cases, 23% controls | PO vs SO (22% trans-fat): 1.16 (0.86, 1.56) | Smoking status, alcohol intake, diabetes, hypertension, abdominal obesity, physical activity, income |
| PO vs SO (5% trans-fat): 1.33 (1.09, 1.62) | ||||||||||
| PO vs other oils: 1.26 (1.02, 1.55) | ||||||||||
| Martinez-Ortíz (2006) [21] | Costa Rica | 1994–1998 | Adult Hispanic Americans of Mestizo background, living in Costa Rica | Dietary pattern: staple, vegetabled | MI diagnosed according to the WHO criteria | Non-fatal first acute MI | 496/ 518 | 37% | Staple patterne: 3.53 (1.98, 6.31) | Age, sex, area of residence, total energy intake, smoking status, household income, physical activity, waist-to-hip ratio, diabetes, and hypertension |
| Vegetable patterne: 0.92 (0.57, 1.50) |
CI: Confidence interval, CHD: Coronary heart disease, MI: Myocardial infarction, MUFA: Mono-unsaturated fatty acid, OR: Odds ratio, PO: Palm oil, PUFA: Polyunsaturated fatty acid, SFA: Saturated fatty acids, SES: Socioeconomic status, SO: Soybean oil, WHO: World Health Organisation.
a Typical symptoms of myocardial infarction and elevations in cardiac enzyme levels or diagnostic changes in electrocardiogram
b Risk estimates of the fifth quintile of dietary intake as compared to the lowest quintile of dietary intake
c Other oils were sunflower oil, corn oil, olive oil, canola oil, and less common oils and fats. Percentage of usage in cases and controls were 10% and 11% for soybean oil with 22% trans fat, 39% and 41% for soybean oil with 5% trans fat, and 21% and 25% for other oils, respectively
d Staple pattern diet was characterised by increasing intake of palm oil, legumes, refined grains, fresh condiments, coffee, red meat, added sugar, and organ meat, and decreasing intake of other oils, fruit juices, dressings, cold breakfast cereals, pizza, skinless and lean chicken, and low-fat dairy products. Vegetable pattern diet was characterised by higher intake of all vegetables, fruits, skinless and lean chicken, and saccharin, and lower intake of added sugar, chicken and coffee.
e Risk estimates of the fifth quintile of factor scores as compared to the lowest quintile of factor scores based on the principal components factor analysis of food groups