Association between polyunsaturated fatty acid intake and the prevalence of erectile dysfunction: A cross-sectional analysis of the NHANES 2001–2004

BACKGROUND: Polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFAs) have demonstrated significant therapeutic potential across a wide range of disease. The aim of this study was to investigate the potential impact of PUFA intake on the prevalence of erectile dysfunction (ED). METHODS: The study included a total of 3730 participants from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES) 2001–2004. Univariate analysis, multivariate regression analysis, subgroup analysis and machine learning were utilized to explore the relationship of variables to ED. Dose response curves were constructed to observe the linear or nonlinear relationship between PUFA intake and the prevalence of ED. Propensity score matching (PSM) was used for sensitivity analysis. Finally, the potential mechanistic link between PUFA intake and ED was explored. RESULTS: Through univariate and multivariate regression analysis results before and after PSM and XGBoost algorithm model results, arachidonic acid (AA) was chosen as the main research object. The consumption of AA was found to be associated with a decreased prevalence of ED under the fully adjusted model [OR = 0.33 (0.20, 0.56), P < 0.001]. The interaction between AA and education was found in the subgroup analysis. Dose-response curves indicated a linear negative correlation between AA intake and the prevalence of ED. The above results were confirmed in the data analysis after 1:1 PSM. In addition, AA intake was associated with a decrease in inflammatory biomarkers and homocysteine. CONCLUSIONS: The results suggest that AA intake is negatively correlated with the prevalence of ED. Further, anti-inflammatory and anti-endothelial damage may play a role in this. SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1186/s12944-023-01950-9.