Objective: To study the composition of fat intake and fat-rich meals consumed during a trial in which obese subjects were treated with a lipase-inhibitor or placebo, with emphasis on food choices and eating hours.
Design: Patients were instructed to record all food and drink taken for four days prior to each dietician visit. The food diaries from all scheduled 15 treatment visits were analysed for nutritional content and composition and for temporal distribution. All meals containing 25 g of fat were defined as fat-rich.
Subjects: Twenty-eight women and six men, mean age 45.2 +/- 10.9 (SD) years with a mean body mass index of 37.3 +/- 3.3 (SD) kg m-2 at the beginning of the study.
Results: Fat intake, both as absolute weight and as energy % was generally higher in the placebo group but no significant trend over time could be seen. Fat rich meals were increased by 59% towards the end of the study. Most fat rich meals were eaten at lunch and dinner. Cooking fat, fatty sauces, meat dishes and cheese contributed to the major proportion of fat, both for placebo and drug treated subjects. No major changes were seen in food choice over time.
Conclusion: A lipase inhibitor may affect the amount of fat ingested but does not seem to change major sources of fat. The typical fat-rich meal consumed by these subjects was a meat dish, consumed in the evening.