Nutritional status of Japanese-Brazilian subjects: comparison across gender and generation.
The present paper describes a nutritional survey carried out among Japanese-Brazilian subjects living in Bauru, south-eastern Brazil. Data were from a cross-sectional population-based study of 1283 first-generation Japanese-Brazilian subjects (Japan-born; 127 men and 121 women) and second-generation Japanese-Brazilian subjects (Brazil-born; 456 men and 573 women) aged 30-90 years. Anthropometric measurements and % body fat were measured and BMI and waist:hip ratio calculated. Dietary assessment was performed using a validated food-frequency questionnaire. A considerable proportion of men (51 %) and women (47 %) had excess weight (BMI>24.9 kg/m2). A greater waist circumference in men and women (age-adjusted by covariance analysis) was observed among Brazil-born participants. In general, only 10 % of the participants reported current practice of sports or other vigorous physical activity. Age-adjusted mean energy intakes and % energy from macronutrients were found to be similar across generations. The age-adjusted mean daily % energy intake from fat were similar across generations: among Japan-born participants, they were 31.5 (95 % CI 30.6, 32.4) % for men and 32.6 (95 % CI 31.7, 33.5) % for women. The respective figures for Brazil-born subjects were 32.1 (95 % CI 31.6, 32.6) % and 33.2 (95 % CI 32.7, 33.5) %. These values are quite different from the usual intakes reported in Japan during the last decades (about 25 %). Taking into account the traditional Japanese diet, a high energy density diet and a sedentary lifestyle may be implicated in the high prevalence of central obesity and metabolic syndrome observed among Japanese-Brazilian subjects across gender and generations.
Department of Preventive Medicine, Federal University of São Paulo, Rua Botucatu 740, 04023-062 São Paulo, SP, Brazil.
Renata D
RD
Freire
Marly A
MA
Cardoso
Alexandre R
AR
Shinzato
Sandra R G
SR
Ferreira
D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D000375:Aging; D000428:Alcohol Drinking; D001823:Body Composition; D015992:Body Mass Index; D001938:Brazil; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D004032:Diet; D015444:Exercise; D005260:Female; D005951:Glucose Tolerance Test; D006306:Health Surveys; D006801:Humans; D007564:Japan / Q000208:ethnology; D008297:Male; D024821:Metabolic Syndrome; D008875:Middle Aged; D009752:Nutritional Status; D012306:Risk; D012723:Sex