Associations of body mass index with the level of free fatty acids in men

BACKGROUND: The people with an excessive amount of adipose tissue have elevated levels of free fatty acids (FFA) in the blood, which ultimately leads to disorders of lipid metabolism and insulin resistance, which are the main factors in the development of diabetes mellitus.

AIM: To study the content of FFA in blood plasma, as well as their association with body weight in men.

MATERIALS AND METHODS: A single-center observational one-stage study was conducted. The sample was formed by a random representative method, comparable by sex and age. The levels of FFA were determined in the blood plasma by high-performance liquid chromatography with mass spectrometry.

RESULTS: The study included 250 men. The selected participants were divided into groups according to their body mass index (BMI): Group 1 — 62 people with BMI≤24.9 kg/m², Group 2 — 101 people with BMI 25.0–29.9 kg/m², Group 3 — 87 people with BMI≥30.0 kg/m². Obese men were divided into: Group 4 — 62 people with BMI 30.0–34.9 kg/m², Group 5 — 19 people with BMI 35.0–39.9 kg/m², Group 6 — 6 people with BMI≥40.0 kg/m².

The content of docosatetraenoic acid was higher in groups 2 (p=0.002) and 5 (p=0.003), when compared with group 1. The content of gamma-linolenic acid was higher in group 3 than in group 1 (p=0.041). Concentration of oleic; linoleic; dihomo-gamma-linolenic; midic; arachidonic; eicosapentaenoic acids were higher in group 5 than in group 1 (p=0.007, p=0.023, p=0.004, p=0.019, p=0.006, p=0.001, respectively), and also than in group 2 (p=0.006, p=0.017, p=0.007, p=0.007, p=0.008, p=0.001, respectively). The content of nervonic acid is higher in groups 1 (p=0.029) and 2 (p=0.012) than in group 4. Obesity is associated with increased levels of gamma-linolenic (1.030, 1.006–1.056, p=0.015) and eicosapentaenoic acids (1.061, 1.000–1.125, p=0.045), and a decrease in the level of nervonic acid (0.953, 0.913–0.994, p=0.027).

CONCLUSION: The FFA levels of blood plasma is significantly different in men with normal body weight and the presence of obesity. The content of oleic, gamma-linolenic, midic, digomo-gamma-linolenic, arachidonic, docosatetraenoic and ­eicosapentaenoic acids was significantly higher in men with grade 2 obesity. An increase in the level of gamma-linolenic and eicosapentaenoic acids, and a decrease in the level of nervonic acid are associated with obesity, regardless of the age.

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