French paradox - Wikipedia

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2021-05-21 17:00:04

The French paradox is a catchphrase first used in the late 1980s, that summarizes the apparently paradoxical epidemiological observation that French people have a relatively low incidence of coronary heart disease (CHD), while having a diet relatively rich in saturated fats,[1] in apparent contradiction to the widely held belief that the high consumption of such fats is a risk factor for CHD. The paradox is that if the thesis linking saturated fats to CHD is valid, the French ought to have a higher rate of CHD than comparable countries where the per capita consumption of such fats is lower.

It has also been suggested that the French paradox is an illusion, created in part by differences in the way that French authorities collect health statistics, as compared to other countries, and in part by the long-term effects, in the coronary health of French citizens, of changes in dietary patterns which were adopted years earlier.[2] Nevertheless the French diet may be considered to be a type of Mediterranean diet - that is, one consisting largely of fruits, vegetables, whole grains, legumes and olive oil, with limited amounts of lean protein from fish and poultry - which has fairly well established benefits.[3]

The term "French Paradox" was first used in The Letter, the newsletter of the International Organisation of Vine and Wine, in 1986. In 1989, theatre Professor George Riley Kernodle of the University of Arkansas used the term in a chapter in his book Theatre In History, later republished as a separate academic paper.[4]