Association between alcohol intake and overweight and obesity: a systematic review and dose-response meta-analysis of 127 observational studies

Golzarand, Mahdieh; Salari-Moghaddam, Asma; Mirmiran, Parvin

doi:10.1080/10408398.2021.1925221

Cited by 21 publications

(20 citation statements)

References 141 publications

Supporting

Mentioning

Contrasting

Order By: Relevance

“…This also matches data of a recent study indicating that higher BMI is related to an increased risk for hospital readmissions in male in-patients with AUD, while it tends to be protective in female in-patients 90 . When analyzing both sexes together, our results match previous meta-analyses suggesting that higher alcohol intake associates with higher BMI 34 , 35 . In terms of practical relevance, the small effect sizes of up to Hedges’ g = − 0.26 mean that the BMI of approximately 60% of female drinkers is below the average BMI of non-drinking women 91 .…”

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 89%

“…A more recent systematic review and meta-analysis published in 2022 showed that alcohol consumption increased the risk of obesity in adults 2.05 times compared to non-drinkers 34 , but did not distinguish between moderate vs. heavy drinkers or men vs. women. Another recent meta-analysis that focused on overweight, obese, or abdominally obese subjects again reports higher odds of obesity and overweight in heavy drinkers, but did not include normal weight samples 35 .…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 1 more Smart Citation

Meta-analytic evidence for a sex-diverging association between alcohol use and body mass index

Siegmann

Mazza

Weinland

et al. 2022

Sci Rep

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Alcohol use is an important health issue and has been suggested to contribute to the burden produced by obesity. Both alcohol use and obesity are subject to sex differences. The available studies on the relationship between alcohol use and body mass index (BMI) report inconsistent results with positive, negative, and null findings which requests a meta-analytic approach. Therefore, we conducted a meta-analysis of case–control, cohort, and cross-sectional studies. The systematic literature search and data extraction was performed by 3 independent raters. We conducted sex-separated meta-analyses and -regressions to investigate how alcohol consumption associates with BMI. Our systematic literature search resulted in 36 studies with 48 data sets (Nmen = 172,254; kmen = 30; Nwomen = 24,164; kwomen = 18; Nunknown sex = 672,344; kunknown sex = 24). Alcohol use was associated with higher BMI in men (g = 0.08 [0.07; 0.09]) and lower BMI in women (g = − 0.26 [− 0.29; − 0.22]). Moreover, we found the amount of daily alcohol intake in men (β = 0.001 [0.0008; 0.0014]) and ethnicity in women (g[Caucasians] = − 0.45 versus g[Asians] = − 0.05; z = 11.5, p < 0.0001) to moderate these effects. We here identified sex-diverging relationships between alcohol use and BMI, found daily alcohol intake and ethnicity to sex-specifically moderate these effects, and argue that sex-specific choice of beverage type and higher amount of daily alcohol use in men than in women account for these observations. Future research is needed to provide empirical evidence for the underlying mechanisms.

show abstract

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 89%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Meta-analytic evidence for a sex-diverging association between alcohol use and body mass index

Siegmann

Mazza

Weinland

et al. 2022

Sci Rep

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…Importantly, neither BMI nor perceived weight significantly predicted changing alcohol consumption in the full sample. While we acknowledge this is a complex area for intervention, people with higher BMI and/or higher perceived weight represent a key subgroup that could benefit from energy-related messaging because of the established links between alcohol consumption, higher BMI [7] and overweight and obesity [8]. Engaging this subgroup could potentially reduce healthcare system costs, morbidity, and mortality; further research to determine existing consumer awareness and motivations to change is a priority.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…In cross-sectional studies, higher alcohol consumption is associated with higher body mass index (BMI) [7], overweight and obesity [8], and increased risk of weight gain [9]. For those above normal weight range, odds of lifetime alcohol use disorders were increased in United States national data [10].…”

Section: Alcohol Consumption and Associations With Energy Intakementioning

confidence: 99%

Which drinkers have changed their alcohol consumption due to energy content concerns? An Australian survey

et al. 2022

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Background Alcohol is a discretionary, energy dense, dietary component. Compared to non-drinkers, people who consume alcohol report higher total energy intake and may be at increased risk of weight gain, overweight, and obesity, which are key preventable risk factors for illness. However, accurate consumer knowledge of the energy content in alcohol is low. To inform future behaviour change interventions among drinkers, this study investigated individual characteristics associated with changing alcohol consumption due to energy-related concerns. Methods An online survey was undertaken with 801 Australian adult drinkers (18–59 years, 50.2% female), i.e. who consumed alcohol at least monthly. In addition to demographic and health-related characteristics, participants reported past-year alcohol consumption, past-year reductions in alcohol consumption, frequency of harm minimisation strategy use (when consuming alcohol), and frequency of changing alcohol consumption behaviours because of energy-related concerns. Results When prompted, 62.5% of participants reported changing alcohol consumption for energy-related reasons at least ‘sometimes’. Women, those aged 30–44 years, metropolitan residents, those with household income $80,001–120,000, and risky/more frequent drinkers had increased odds of changing consumption because of energy-related concerns, and unemployed respondents had reduced odds. Conclusions Results indicate that some sociodemographic groups are changing alcohol consumption for energy-related reasons, but others are not, representing an underutilised opportunity for health promotion communication. Further research should investigate whether messaging to increase awareness of alcohol energy content, including through systems-based policy actions such as nutritional/energy product labelling, would motivate reduced consumption across a broader range of drinkers.

show abstract

“…Most recently, Golzarand et al [42] conducted meta-analyses in 127 observational studies investigating the association between alcohol intake and markers of adiposity. Metaanalyses of cohort studies revealed no significant association between alcohol drinking and risk of overweight (HR 0.93; 95% CI 0.46, 1.89; I 2 = 97.7; p = 0.84), obesity (HR 0.84, 95% CI 0.52, 1.37; I 2 = 90.7; p = 0.48), overweight/obesity (HR 1.15; 95% CI 0.84, 1.58; I 2 = 87.0; p = 0.37), nor abdominal obesity (HR 1.13; 95% CI 0.90, 1.41; I 2 = 61.0; p = 0.28).…”

Section: Alcohol and Body Weightmentioning

confidence: 99%

‘Joining the Dots’: Individual, Sociocultural and Environmental Links between Alcohol Consumption, Dietary Intake and Body Weight—A Narrative Review

Fong¹,

Scott²,

Albani³

et al. 2021

Nutrients

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Alcohol is energy-dense, elicits weak satiety responses relative to solid food, inhibits dietary fat oxidation, and may stimulate food intake. It has, therefore, been proposed as a contributor to weight gain and obesity. The aim of this narrative review was to consolidate and critically appraise the evidence on the relationship of alcohol consumption with dietary intake and body weight, within mainstream (non-treatment) populations. Publications were identified from a PubMed keyword search using the terms ‘alcohol’, ‘food’, ‘eating’, ‘weight’, ‘body mass index’, ‘obesity’, ‘food reward’, ‘inhibition’, ‘attentional bias’, ‘appetite’, ‘culture’, ‘social’. A snowball method and citation searches were used to identify additional relevant publications. Reference lists of relevant publications were also consulted. While limited by statistical heterogeneity, pooled results of experimental studies showed a relatively robust association between acute alcohol intake and greater food and total energy intake. This appears to occur via metabolic and psychological mechanisms that have not yet been fully elucidated. Evidence on the relationship between alcohol intake and weight is equivocal. Most evidence was derived from cross-sectional survey data which does not allow for a cause-effect relationship to be established. Observational research evidence was limited by heterogeneity and methodological issues, reducing the certainty of the evidence. We found very little qualitative work regarding the social, cultural, and environmental links between concurrent alcohol intake and eating behaviours. That the evidence of alcohol intake and body weight remains uncertain despite no shortage of research over the years, indicates that more innovative research methodologies and nuanced analyses are needed to capture what is clearly a complex and dynamic relationship. Also, given synergies between ‘Big Food’ and ‘Big Alcohol’ industries, effective policy solutions are likely to overlap and a unified approach to policy change may be more effective than isolated efforts. However, joint action may not occur until stronger evidence on the relationship between alcohol intake, food intake and weight is established.

show abstract

Association between alcohol intake and overweight and obesity: a systematic review and dose-response meta-analysis of 127 observational studies

Cited by 21 publications

References 141 publications

Meta-analytic evidence for a sex-diverging association between alcohol use and body mass index

Meta-analytic evidence for a sex-diverging association between alcohol use and body mass index

Which drinkers have changed their alcohol consumption due to energy content concerns? An Australian survey

‘Joining the Dots’: Individual, Sociocultural and Environmental Links between Alcohol Consumption, Dietary Intake and Body Weight—A Narrative Review

Contact Info

Product

Resources

About