Association of food consumption with total volumes of visceral and subcutaneous abdominal adipose tissue in a Northern German population

Abstract

Excess accumulation of visceral adipose tissue (VAT) is a known risk factor for cardiometabolic diseases; further, subcutaneous abdominal adipose tissue (SAAT) and the ratio of both (VAT:SAAT ratio) have been discussed as potentially detrimental. Information about the association between diet and adipose tissue is scarce. This study aimed to identify food group intake associated with VAT and SAAT and the VAT:SAAT ratio in a Northern German population. A cross-sectional analysis was conducted in 344 men and 241 women who underwent an MRI to quantify total volumes of VAT and SAAT. Intake of fourteen food groups was assessed with a self-administered 112-item FFQ. Linear regression models adjusted for age, sex, energy intake, physical activity, intake of other food groups and mutual adjustment for VAT and SAAT were calculated to analyse the associations between standardised food group intake and VAT and SAAT, or the VAT:SAAT ratio. Intakes of potatoes (P = 0·043) and cakes (P = 0·003) were positively and inversely, respectively, associated with both VAT and SAAT. By contrast, intake of cereals was negatively associated with VAT (P = 0·045) only, whereas intakes of eggs (P = 0·006) and non-alcoholic beverages (P = 0·042) were positively associated with SAAT only. The association between eggs and non-alcoholic beverages with SAAT remained significant after further consideration of VAT. Intake of non-alcoholic beverages was also inversely associated with the VAT:SAAT ratio (P = 0·001). Our analysis adds to the evidence that intake of foods is independently associated with VAT or SAAT volumes.

Differences in the association of diet quality with body fat distribution between men and women

“…A German study examined dietary components and reported effect modification by sex for a posteriori patterns, e.g., a negative association with VAT was seen for fiber and carbohydrates from cereals in men but not women [ 26 ]. Yet, another analysis did not detect any effect modification for the relation of 14 food groups with various adiposity tissues [ 27 ]. Men and women in the MEC have shown similar associations of high diet quality with disease outcomes, e.g., mortality [ 20 ] and type 2 diabetes [ 28 ].…”

Ethnic differences in anthropometric measures and abdominal fat distribution: a cross-sectional pooled study in Inuit, Africans and Europeans

“…We did control for important factors such age, smoking and physical activity, but the lack of comparable data on diet is a limitation. Broadly defined, ethnicity is closely linked with cultural factors including traditional dietary patterns, and some nutritional factors are suggested to contribute to variation in VAT and SAT 38. Also, a number of physiological explanations for ethnic variation in body fat distribution have been proposed, especially related to genetic and epigenetic programming of the tendency of the fat compartments to store lipids 5.…”

Association of Habitual Patterns and Types of Physical Activity and Inactivity with MRI-Determined Total Volumes of Visceral and Subcutaneous Abdominal Adipose Tissue in a General White Population

“…All ATLAS-based analyses were performed by the same observer to minimize interrater variability. The accuracy of the semi-automatically ATLAS determined volumes of VAT and SAAT was validated against manually determined AAT volumes using the image analysis software slice-O-matic (version 4.2, Tomovision, Montreal, Canada) in a subset of 38 participants [ 49 ]. For both VAT (r = 0.996) and SAAT (r = 0.996), AAT volumes analyzed by ATLAS and slice-O-matic yielded high intraclass correlations.…”