Are anthropometric changes in healthy adults caused by modifications in dietary habits or by aging?
The aim of this work was to investigate to what extent age-dependent anthropometric changes are causally related to changes in dietary habits. In a randomly obtained sample of 246 healthy adults in the age range of 20-90 years from a well-defined agrarian population, the intake of proteins, fat and carbohydrates in males decreases with age (r = -0.65, p < 0.001; r = -0.65, p < 0.001; r = -0.5, p < 0.01, respectively), but in females it remains unaltered (e.g. the mean +/- SD daily protein intake in young adult females is 74 +/- 31 vs. 71 +/- 11 g in individuals over 80); in males it decreases from 140 +/- 34 to 71 +/- 13 g. On the contrary, in both sexes the muscle-mass-related measurements decrease (r = -0.45, p < 0.001; vs. r = -0.41, p < 0.001; mean values of the quotient lean body mass with body length in young adult females and males were 41.9 +/- 4.4 and 52.7 +/- 5.9 vs. 35.0 +/- 3.1 and 43.2 +/- 5.0, respectively, in individuals over 80, p < 0.001 in both sexes). From 35 onwards, the daily urea excretion-as a marker of the protein degradation rate-declines significantly with age, but without a clear correlation to the protein intake (r = 0.38), as occurs during young adulthood (r = 0.63). Furthermore, body fat content tends to increase with age, but the differences are statistically significant only in males of very advanced age (p < 0.05).(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)
Ruiz-Torres
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A
Servicio de Endocrinología y Nutrición, Hospital de la Princesa, Universidad Autónoma de Madrid, España.
Gimeno
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A
Muñoz
F J
FJ
Vicent
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D
D000328:Adult; D017677:Age Distribution; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D000375:Aging / Q000502:physiology*; D000886:Anthropometry; D015992:Body Mass Index; D004032:Diet / Q000639:trends; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D016014:Linear Models; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D012494:Sampling Studies; D017678:Sex Distribution