apostilas

REVISÃO REVIEW

Importância dos ácidos graxos essenciais e os efeitos dos ácidos graxos trans do leite materno para o desenvolvimento fetal e neonatal
The importance of essential fatty acids and the effect of trans fatty acids in human milk on fetal and neonatal development

Sandra Manzato Barboza Tinoco 1
Rosely Sichieri 2
Anibal Sanchez Moura 1
Flávia da Silva Santos 3
Maria das Graças Tavares do Carmo

Abstract
1 Departamento de Ciências
Fisiológicas, Universidade do
Estado do Rio de Janeiro, Rio de Janeiro, Brasil.
2 Instituto de Medicina
Social, Universidade do
Estado do Rio de Janeiro, Rio de Janeiro, Brasil.
3 Centro de Ciências da
Saúde, Universidade Federal do Rio de Janeiro, Rio de
Janeiro, Brasil.

Correspondência
M. G. T. Carmo
Instituto de Nutrição Josué de Castro, Centro de Ciências da Saúde, Universidade
Federal do Rio de Janeiro.
Av. Brigadeiro Trompowski s/n, Bloco J, 2 o andar,
Rio de Janeiro, RJ
21941-590, Brasil. [e-mail] Breastfeeding has a major impact on public health, since human breast milk is the best food for infants up to six months of age. The lipid fraction in human milk is the main source of energy for the infant and supplies essential nutrients such as fat-soluble vitamins and polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFA). Essential fatty acids (EFA), specifically linoleic acid (LA, 18:2n-6) and α-linolenic acid (ALA, 18:3n-3), are precursors of long-chain polyunsaturated fatty acids
(LC-PUFA), including docosahexaenoic (DHA) and arachidonic (ARA) acids. Quality of lipids in secreted milk is precisely related to maternal ingestion. LC-PUFAs protect against allergy and infection and are important for visual and cognitive development in infancy. Industrial food processing has introduced the trans fatty acids
(TFA) among the nutrients available to the population. TFA can interfere with the metabolism of essential fatty acids by decreasing LC-PUFA synthesis. It is thus important