GLOSSARY

Fatty Acid Profile is an organised presentation of fatty-acid composition, often used for the same concept, with reporting basis and sample fraction central.

A fatty-acid profile may report percentages of total fatty acids rather than grams per food serving. A higher percentage need not mean a higher gram intake when total fat differs. Extraction method and sample fraction also matter. Product comparisons require total fat and portion size alongside percentages, distinct from cholesterol or total-fat labelling.

Circulating fatty acids occur both as albumin-bound non-esterified molecules and esterified within particle triglycerides and phospholipids. A study reporting a fatty-acid level must identify the measured fraction. A component's percentage in phospholipids differs from its absolute concentration in whole blood; direct comparison without matching fractions and units can be misleading.

A food's individual fatty-acid content varies with species, animal feed, plant variety and processing; a food name does not establish a universal constant. Use suitable composition data or product information for calculations. Finding a fatty acid in the body also does not prove direct intake from that food, because endogenous synthesis and conversion occur.