Individuals who consistently consume large amounts of trans-unsaturated fats are highly vulnerable to ulcerative colitis.
This study investigated the effect of long-term intake of dietary fat on Crohn’s disease and ulcerative colitis risk. Using semi-quantitative food frequency questionnaires, researchers examined the saturated fat, unsaturated fat, total fat, and n-3 and n-6 polyunsaturated fatty acid (PUFA) intakes of 170,805 women recruited from the Nurse’s Health Study. The ulcerative colitis and Crohn’s disease hazard ratio of each participant in this study was also assessed.
Researchers found out that habitual consumers of diets rich in trans-unsaturated fats had high odds of developing ulcerative colitis. On the other hand, increased consumption of long-chain n-3 PUFAs was found to reduce ulcerative colitis risk. According to this study, high intake of n-6 PUFAs, total, unsaturated, and saturated fats did not contribute to the development or prevention of ulcerative colitis and Crohn's disease. The results of this study suggest that a dietary pattern typified by higher intakes of trans-unsaturated fats may promote the development of ulcerative colitis.