title: Association between Dietary Patterns and the Indicators of Obesity among Chinese: A Cross-Sectional Study.
abstract: No previous study has investigated dietary pattern in association with obesity risk in a middle-aged Chinese population. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the associations between dietary patterns and the risk of obesity in the city of Hangzhou, the capital of Zhejiang Province, east China. In this cross-sectional study of 2560 subjects aged 45-60 years, dietary intakes were evaluated using a semi-quantitative food frequency questionnaire (FFQ). All anthropometric measurements were obtained using standardized procedures. The partial correlation analysis was performed to assess the associations between dietary patterns and body mass index (BMI), waist circumference (WC), and waist to hip ratio (WHR). Multivariate logistic regression analysis was used to examine the associations between dietary patterns and obesity, with adjustment for potential confounders. Four major dietary patterns were extracted by means of factor analysis: animal food, traditional Chinese, western fast-food, and high-salt patterns. The animal food pattern was positively associated with BMI (r = 0.082, 0.144, respectively, p < 0.05) and WC (r = 0.102, 0.132, respectively, p < 0.01), and the traditional Chinese pattern was inversely associated with BMI (r = -0.047, -0.116, respectively, p < 0.05) and WC (r = -0.067, -0.113, respectively, p < 0.05) in both genders. After controlling for potential confounders, subjects in the highest quartile of animal food pattern scores had a greater odds ratio for abdominal obesity (odds ratio (OR) = 1.67; 95% confidence interval (CI): 1.188-2.340; p < 0.01), in comparison to those from the lowest quartile. Compared with the lowest quartile of the traditional Chinese pattern, the highest quartile had a lower odds ratio for abdominal obesity (OR = 0.63; 95% CI: 0.441-0.901, p < 0.05).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Our findings indicated that the animal food pattern was associated with a higher risk of abdominal obesity, while the traditional Chinese pattern was associated with a lower risk of abdominal obesity. Further prospective studies are warranted to confirm these findings.
authors.affiliation: Department of Nutrition, Zhejiang Hospital, Xihu district, Hangzhou 310013, Zhejiang, China. shulong19880920@126.com.
authors.forename: Long
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Shu
authors.affiliation: Department of Nutrition, Zhejiang Hospital, Xihu district, Hangzhou 310013, Zhejiang, China. kuaidou09@163.com.|Department of Digestion, Zhejiang Hospital, Xihu district, Hangzhou 310013, Zhejiang, China. kuaidou09@163.com.
authors.forename: Pei-Fen
authors.initials: PF
authors.lastname: Zheng
authors.affiliation: Department of Nutrition, Zhejiang Hospital, Xihu district, Hangzhou 310013, Zhejiang, China. zxy19740804@sina.com.
authors.forename: Xiao-Yan
authors.initials: XY
authors.lastname: Zhang
authors.affiliation: Department of Nutrition, Zhejiang Hospital, Xihu district, Hangzhou 310013, Zhejiang, China. xiaosi_32075001@126.com.
authors.forename: Cai-Juan
authors.initials: CJ
authors.lastname: Si
authors.affiliation: Department of Nutrition, Zhejiang Hospital, Xihu district, Hangzhou 310013, Zhejiang, China. xly2008hi@163.com.
authors.forename: Xiao-Long
authors.initials: XL
authors.lastname: Yu
authors.affiliation: Department of Nutrition, Zhejiang Hospital, Xihu district, Hangzhou 310013, Zhejiang, China. gaowei05715133@163.com.
authors.forename: Wei
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Gao
authors.affiliation: Department of Nutrition, Zhejiang Hospital, Xihu district, Hangzhou 310013, Zhejiang, China. zhanglun306@163.com.
authors.forename: Lun
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Zhang
authors.affiliation: Department of Nutrition, Zhejiang Hospital, Xihu district, Hangzhou 310013, Zhejiang, China. liaodan0203@sina.com.
authors.forename: Dan
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Liao
mesh_terms: D000367:Age Factors; D044466:Asian People / Q000523:psychology; D015992:Body Mass Index; D016009:Chi-Square Distribution; D002681:China / Q000453:epidemiology; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D004032:Diet / Q000009:adverse effects / Q000208:ethnology*; D005247:Feeding Behavior / Q000208:ethnology*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D016015:Logistic Models; D008297:Male; D008460:Meat / Q000009:adverse effects; D008875:Middle Aged; D015999:Multivariate Analysis; D056128:Obesity, Abdominal / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000208:ethnology* / Q000517:prevention & control / Q000523:psychology; D016017:Odds Ratio; D065840:Protective Factors; D012307:Risk Factors; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D055105:Waist Circumference / Q000208:ethnology; D049629:Waist-Hip Ratio
keywords: China; cross-sectional study; dietary patterns; factor analysis; obesity