Hostname: page-component-586b7cd67f-tf8b9 Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-11-26T02:57:11.897Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false
  • English
  • Français

Consistency of use of plant stanol ester margarine in Finland

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  02 January 2007

Meri Simojoki ,
Riitta Luoto ,
Antti Uutela ,
John D Boice Jr ,
Joseph K McLaughlin  and
Pekka Puska
Meri Simojoki
Affiliation:
Department of Epidemiology and Health Promotion, National Public Health Institute, Helsinki, Finland
Riitta Luoto*
Affiliation:
Health Education Research Unit, The UKK Institute, Postbox 30, FIN-33501, Tampere, Finland
Antti Uutela
Affiliation:
Department of Epidemiology and Health Promotion, National Public Health Institute, Helsinki, Finland
John D Boice Jr
Affiliation:
International Epidemiology Institute, Rockville, MD, USA Department of Medicine, Vanderbilt University Medical Center and Vanderbilt–Ingram Cancer Center, Nashville TN, USA
Joseph K McLaughlin
Affiliation:
International Epidemiology Institute, Rockville, MD, USA Department of Medicine, Vanderbilt University Medical Center and Vanderbilt–Ingram Cancer Center, Nashville TN, USA
Pekka Puska
Affiliation:
Department of Epidemiology and Health Promotion, National Public Health Institute, Helsinki, Finland Department of Noncommunicable Disease Prevention and Health Promotion, World Health Organization, Geneva, Switzerland
*
*Corresponding author: Email [email protected]
Rights & Permissions [Opens in a new window]

Abstract

Core share and HTML view are not available for this content. However, as you have access to this content, a full PDF is available via the ‘Save PDF’ action button.
Objective:

The aims of this study were to investigate the consistency of use of plant stanol ester margarine and to characterise consistent and inconsistent users.

Design:

A cohort of plant stanol ester margarine users was established based on 14 national surveys conducted by the National Public Health Institute in Finland between 1996 and 1999. A follow-up study questionnaire was developed and sent to 1294 users in 2000.

Setting:

Subjects who reported using plant stanol ester margarine in both the original survey and the follow-up study were classified as consistent users, and the rest as inconsistent users.

Subjects:

The study population consisted of 1094 subjects aged 18–87 years, 590 men and 504 women.

Results:

There were 357 (33%) consistent and 737 (67%) inconsistent users of plant stanol ester margarine in the study population. Consistent users were more likely to be men and to have a higher household income than inconsistent users. Both consistent and inconsistent users were predominantly middle-aged persons with a healthy lifestyle and diet as well as a history of cardiovascular disease. Healthfulness was the main factor affecting bread spread choice among 94% of the consistent users and 59% of the inconsistent users.

Conclusions:

The use of plant stanol ester margarine is more often inconsistent than consistent. There is nevertheless a relatively large subgroup of long-term users of plant stanol ester margarine. It is important to examine the health effects especially among these regular users.

Keywords

ConsistencyPlant stanolMargarineFinland
Type
Research Article
Information
Public Health Nutrition , Volume 7 , Issue 1 , February 2004 , pp. 63 - 68
Copyright
Copyright © CAB International 2004

References

1Diplock, AT, Aggett, PJ, Ashwell, M, Bornet, F, Fern, EB, Roberfroid, MB. Scientific concepts of functional foods in Europe: consensus document. British Journal of Nutrition 1999; 81: S1–S27.Google Scholar
2Plat, J, Kerckhoffs, DAJM, Mensink, RP. Therapeutic potential of plant sterols and stanols. Current Opinion in Lipidology 2000; 11: 571–6.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
3Vainio, H, Mutanen, M. Functional foods – blurring the distinction between food and medicine. Scandinavian Journal of Work, Environment & Health 2000; 26: 178–80.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
4Raulio, S, Nurttila, A, Mannonen, L. Adding Phytosterols and Stanols to Food. Modelling the Amount Received by Finnish Adults. Publication No. 10. Helsinki: National Food Agency, 2001.Google Scholar
5Miettinen, TA, Puska, P, Gylling, H, Vanhanen, H, Vartiainen, E. Reduction of serum cholesterol with sitostanol-ester margarine in a mildly hypercholesterolemic population. New England Journal of Medicine 1995; 333: 1308–12.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
6Law, M. Plant sterol and stanol margarines and health. British Medical Journal 2000; 320: 861–4.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
7Suomen Sisätautilääkärien Yhdistys, Suomen Kardiologinen Seura, Suomen Verenpaineyhdistys, Kunnallislääkärit-yhdistys, Suomen Teollisuuslääketieteen Yhdistys, Suomen Sydäntautiliitto. Prevention of coronary heart disease in clinical practice [in Finnish]. Suomen Lääkärilehti 1996; 51: 783–802.Google Scholar
8Anttolainen, M, Luoto, R, Uutela, A, Boice, JD Jr, Blot, WJ, McLaughlin, JK, et al. Characteristics of users and nonusers of plant stanol ester margarine in Finland: an approach to study functional foods. Journal of the American Dietetic Association 2001; 101: 1365–8.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
9Helakorpi, S, Patja, K, Prättälä, R, Uutela, A. Health Behaviour and Health among Finnish Adult Population, Spring 2001. Publication No. B16. Helsinki: National Public Health Institute, 2001.Google Scholar
10Vartiainen, E, Jousilahti, P, Alfthan, G, Sundvall, J, Pietinen, P, Puska, P. Cardiovascular risk factor changes in Finland, 1972–1997. International Journal of Epidemiology 2000; 29: 49–56.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
11Pietinen, P, Hartman, AM, Haapa, E, Räsänen, L, Haapakoski, J, Palmgren, J, et al. Reproducibility and validity of dietary assessment instruments, I. A self-administered food use questionnaire with a portion size picture booklet. American Journal of Epidemiology 1988; 128: 655–66.Google Scholar
12SAS Institute, Inc. The SAS System. Cary, NC: SAS Institute, Inc., 1989–1996.Google Scholar
13Puska, P. Nutrition and mortality: the Finnish experience. Acta Cardiologica 2000; 55: 213–20.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed