Serum and adipose tissue lipids in children receiving medium-chain triglyceride diets.

Studies of serum lipids in adults and children receiving most of their dietary fat as medium-chain triglyceride (MCT) have given variable results. Uzawa et al. (1964) showed that significant and maintained hypertriglyceridaemia occurred in individuals in calorie balance, whereas in hypocaloric states no such change was found. A slight fall in serum cholesterol levels was observed in 8 adults when MCT was exchanged isocalorically for long-chain triglyceride (LCT) (Hashim, Arteaga, and Van Itallie, 1960; Roels and Hashim, 1962). On the other hand, Cancio and Menendez-Corrada (1964) in their study of adults with tropical sprue showed a rise in the initially low levels of total lipids and cholesterol when an MCT diet was given. In children with cystic fibrosis given MCT, Kuo and Huang (1965) observed an increase in plasma triglyceride in young infants but not in older children; plasma cholesterol and phospholipid levels were unaffected. In this paper, we report the effect of an MCT diet on the concentration of serum triglyceride, cholesterol, and phospholipids, and on the fatty acid composition of serum triglyceride and phospholipids and adipose tissue triglyceride in children with various malabsorptive disorders.