Lower zinc bioavailability may be related to higher risk of subclinical atherosclerosis in Korean adults.
BACKGROUND
There is a proposed link between dietary zinc intake and atherosclerosis, but this relationship remains unclear. Phytate may contribute to this relationship by influencing zinc bioavailability.


OBJECTIVE
The aim of this study is to examine the relationship between zinc bioavailability and subclinical atherosclerosis in healthy Korean adults.


METHODS
The present cross-sectional analysis used baseline data from the Korean multi-Rural Communities Cohort Study (MRCohort), which is a part of The Korean Genome Epidemiology Study (KoGES). A total of 5,532 subjects (2,116 men and 3,416 women) aged 40 years and older were recruited from rural communities in South Korea between 2005 and 2010. Phytate:zinc molar ratio, estimated from a food-based food frequency questionnaire (FFQ) of 106 food items, was used to determine zinc bioavailability, and carotid intima media thickness (cIMT) and pulse wave velocity (PWV) were measured to calculate the subclinical atherosclerotic index.


RESULTS
We found that phytate:zinc molar ratio is positively related to cIMT in men. A higher phytate:zinc molar ratio was significantly related to an increased risk of atherosclerosis in men, defined as the 80(th) percentile value of cIMT (5(th) vs. 1(st) quintile, OR = 2.11, 95% CI 1.42-3.15, P for trend = 0.0009), and especially in elderly men (5(th) vs. 1(st) quintile, OR = 2.58, 95% CI 1.52-4.37, P for trend = 0.0021). We found a positive relationship between phytate:zinc molar ratio and atherosclerosis risk among women aged 65 years or younger. Phytate:zinc molar ratio was not found to be related to PWV.


CONCLUSIONS
Lower zinc bioavailability may be related to higher atherosclerosis risk.
Department of Preventive Medicine, College of Medicine, Hanyang University, Seoul, South Korea ; Institute for Health and Society, Hanyang University, Seoul, South Korea.
Su Kyoung
SK
Jung
Mi-Kyung
MK
Kim
Young-Hoon
YH
Lee
Dong Hoon
DH
Shin
Min-Ho
MH
Shin
Byung-Yeol
BY
Chun
Bo Youl
BY
Choi
D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D044466:Asian People; D050197:Atherosclerosis / Q000378:metabolism*; D001682:Biological Availability; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D010833:Phytic Acid / Q000378:metabolism; D056910:Republic of Korea; D015032:Zinc / Q000378:metabolism*
D010833:Phytic Acid; D015032:Zinc