Abstract 4 (co-author) British Journal of Nutrition (2004), 92, 735–748
Food
and drinking patterns as predictors of 6-year BMI-adjusted changes
in waist circumference
Jytte Halkjær(1,2,3*), Thorkild IA Sørensen(1), Anne
Tjønneland(4), Per Togo(1,2), Claus Holst(1) and Berit L Heitmann(1,2)
1) Danish Epidemiology Science Centre at the Institute of
Preventive Medicine and
2) Research Unit for Dietary Studies at the Institute of Preventive Medicine,
Copenhagen University Hospital,
Copenhagen, Denmark
3) Research Centre for Prevention and Health, Glostrup University Hospital,
Glostrup, Denmark
4) Institute of Cancer Epidemiology, Danish Cancer Society, Copenhagen, Denmark
Few studies have investigated the prospective associations
between diet or drinking patterns and abdominal obesity; we therefore
investigated whether food and beverage groups or patterns predicted 6-year
changes in waist circumference (WC) and whether these associations were
independent of concurrent changes in BMI as a measure of general obesity. The
subjects were 2300 middle-aged men and women with repeated measurements of
dietary intake, BMI and WC from 1982 to 1993. Intakes from ten food groups and
from coffee, tea, wine, beer and spirits were assessed; gender-specific food
factors were identified by factor analyses. Multiple linear regression analyses
were done before and after adjustment for concurrent changes in BMI. A high
intake of potatoes seemed to prevent gain in WC for men, while a high intake of
refined bread was associated with gain in WC for women. The association
persisted for refined bread, but not for potatoes, after adjustment for
concurrent BMI changes. Among women, but not men, high intakes of beer and
spirits were associated with gain in WC in both models. A high intake of coffee
for women and moderate to high intake of tea for men were associated with gain
in WC, but the associations were weakened, especially for women, after
adjustment for BMI changes. None of the food factors was associated with WC
changes. Based on the present study, we conclude that very few food items and no
food patterns seem to predict changes in WC, whereas high intakes of beer and
spirits among women, and moderate to high tea intake among men, may promote gain
in WC.
Abdominal obesity: Food patterns: Prospective study: Waist circumference