Fig. 1.

Shift in PUFA terminology from data to advice. A meta-analysis of randomised controlled trials (RCT) that increased PUFA⁽⁶⁾, but did not specify n-6 and n-3 PUFA composition, was cited by the 2009 American Heart Association (AHA) Advisory⁽¹⁾. A more recent meta-analysis of RCT that similarly increased unspecified PUFA⁽⁷⁾ was considered evidence of the benefits of n-6 PUFA⁽¹²⁾. Despite substantial increases in n-3 PUFA, these interventions were considered to be ‘almost entirely n-6 PUFA’. The AHA advisory specifically recommended the consumption of ‘at least 5–10 % of energy as n-6 PUFA’.