Table 3.
Potential determinants of maternal erythrocyte polyunsaturated fatty acid composition (% of total FA)
| Variable | n-6 PUFA | n-3 PUFA | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| LA | GLA | DGLA | AA | ALA | EPA | DHA | |
| Age (years) | r = −0.20 | r = 0.05 | r = 0.21 | r = − 0.03 | r = 0.14 | r = 0.20 | r = 0.18 |
| Gestational age (weeks) | r = − 0.17 | r = − 0.06 | r = − 0.10 | r = − 0.18 | r = − 0.05 | r = 0.03 | r = 0.28 |
| Parity | |||||||
| Nulliparous | 8.50 ± 1.16 | 0.05 ± 0.01 | 1.48 ± 0.29 | 14.3 ± 1.11 | 0.12 ± 0.04 | 0.45 ± 0.18 | 5.07 ± 0.98 |
| Primiparous | 8.44 ± 1.18 | 0.05 ± 0.01 | 1.48 ± 0.36 | 14.5 ± 1.12 | 0.14 ± 0.06 | 0.56 ± 0.29 | 5.32 ± 1.44 |
| Multiparous | 8.42 ± 1.08 | 0.05 ± 0.01 | 1.60 ± 0.39 | 14.2 ± 1.57 | 0.13 ± 0.05 | 0.51 ± 0.27 | 5.34 ± 1.78 |
| BMI class (kg/m2) | |||||||
| < 25 | 8.39 ± 1.11 | 0.05 ± 0.01 | 1.53 ± 0.36 | 14.4 ± 1.26 | 0.13 ± 0.05 | 0.51 ± 0.24 | 5.10 ± 1.28 |
| 25–30 | 8.59 ± 1.28 | 0.05 ± 0.01 | 1.49 ± 0.32 | 13.9 ± 1.18 | 0.13 ± 0.05 | 0.56 ± 0.30 | 5.57 ± 1.73 |
| ≥ 30 | 8.28 ± 0.89 | 0.05 ± 0.01 | 1.49 ± 0.40 | 14.7 ± 1.34 | 0.12 ± 0.03 | 0.45 ± 0.16 | 5.52 ± 1.19 |
| Nationality | |||||||
| Belgian | 8.28 ± 1.05 | 0.05 ± 0.01 | 1.58 ± 0.37 | 14.4 ± 1.04 | 0.14 ± 0.05 | 0.52 ± 0.21 | 4.99 ± 1.35 |
| Other | 8.63 ± 1.21 | 0.05 ± 0.01 | 1.44 ± 0.31 | 14.2 ± 1.50 | 0.11 ± 0.04 | 0.51 ± 0.29 | 5.62 ± 1.43 |
| Level of education | |||||||
| Low | 8.53 ± 1.07 | 0.05 ± 0.01 | 1.51 ± 0.36 | 14.4 ± 1.36 | 0.13 ± 0.06 | 0.51 ± 0.29 | 5.19 ± 1.60 |
| High | 8.28 ± 1.22 | 0.05 ± 0.01 | 1.53 ± 0.33 | 14.2 ± 1.08 | 0.13 ± 0.04 | 0.53 ± 0.18 | 5.41 ± 1.04 |
| Smoking status | |||||||
| Non-smoker | 8.49 ± 1.15 | 0.05 ± 0.01 | 1.52 ± 0.36 | 14.2 ± 1.29 | 0.13 ± 0.05 | 0.52 ± 0.26 | 5.41 ± 1.41 |
| Smoker | 8.00 ± 0.84 | 0.05 ± 0.01 | 1.52 ± 0.23 | 14.8 ± 0.95 | 0.15 ± 0.06 | 0.51 ± 0.18 | 4.18 ± 0.95 |
| Physical activity | |||||||
| Yes | 8.39 ± 1.28 | 0.05 ± 0.01 | 1.50 ± 0.33 | 14.1 ± 1.14 | 0.13 ± 0.04 | 0.58 ± 0.25 | 5.81 ± 1.49 |
| No | 8.45 ± 1.07 | 0.05 ± 0.01 | 1.52 ± 0.36 | 14.4 ± 1.31 | 0.13 ± 0.05 | 0.49 ± 0.25 | 5.05 ± 1.33 |
| n-3 PUFA supplement use | |||||||
| Yes | 8.34 ± 1.19 | 0.05 ± 0.01 | 1.50 ± 0.32 | 14.3 ± 1.71 | 0.13 ± 0.04 | 0.55 ± 0.22 | 5.52 ± 1.37 |
| No | 8.46 ± 1.12 | 0.05 ± 0.01 | 1.52 ± 0.36 | 14.3 ± 1.22 | 0.13 ± 0.05 | 0.50 ± 0.26 | 5.19 ± 1.43 |
| EPA supplement intake (mg/day) | r = − 0.20 | r = − 0.11 | r = − 0.03 | r = 0.12 | r = − 0.05 | r = 0.28 | r = − 0.01 |
| DHA supplement intake (mg/day) | r = − 0.41 | r = − 0.04 | r = 0.04 | r = − 0.26 | r = − 0.27 | r = 0.56 | r = 0.57 |
Data are presented as mean ± SD or as Pearson correlation coefficient
Bold font indicates P-values less than 0.05