Dietary Balance Index-07 and the Risk of Anemia in Middle Aged and Elderly People in Southwest China: A Cross Sectional Study.

A balanced diet is essential to achieve and maintain good health. In this study, we assessed diet quality of middle aged and elderly people based on Chinese Diet Balance Index-07 (DBI-07) and explored the associations between DBI-07 and anemia. Data analyzed for this study was from the 2010-2012 National Nutrition and Health Survey in Yunnan province, southwest China (n = 738, aged 50-77 years). Dietary recalls over there consecutive days were done in a face-to-face interview. The scores of DBI-07 for each component and three DBI-07 indicators ((Lower Bound Score (LBS), Higher Bound Score (HBS), Diet Quality Distance (DQD)) were calculated according to compliance with the Dietary Guidelines for Chinese residents. Hemoglobin (Hb) concentration was determined using the cyanmethemoglobin method. Univariate and multivariate linear regression models were used to explore the associations between DBI-07 indicators and anemia, as well as scores of DBI-07 components and Hb level. The sample included 336 men and 402 women. Inadequate intakes of vegetables, fruits, dairy, soybean, eggs, fish and excessive intakes of cereals, meat, cooking oil, salt were both common. 91.3% of the participants had moderate or high levels of inadequate food intake, while 37.7% had moderate or high levels of excessive food intake. The mean Hb was 14.2 ± 1.7 g/dL, with a prevalence of anemia of 13.0%. Subjects with high LBS and DQD were more likely to be anemic (all p < 0.05). After adjustment for potential confounders, there were positive correlations between Hb level and the intakes of vegetables and soybean (ßvegetables = 1.04, p < 0.01; ßsoybean = 0.82, p = 0.04). In conclusion, dietary imbalance and anemia are common in middle aged and elderly population in southwest China and inadequate intakes of vegetables and soybean may increase the risk of anemia.

Patterns of smoking initiation during adolescence and young adulthood in South-West China: findings of the National Nutrition and Health Survey (2010-2012).

OBJECTIVE: This study aims to understand the age patterns of smoking initiation during adolescence and young adulthood in South-West China, where the prevalence of tobacco use is reported as the highest in the country. DESIGN: A cross-sectional study. SETTING: The data were derived from the China National Nutrition and Health Survey in Yunnan Province, South-West China (2010-2012). PARTICIPANTS: A total of 4801 participants aged 15-65 years were included. PRIMARY OUTCOME MEASURES: A survival model was used to estimate the hazard of smoking initiation by age and log-rank test was used to compare the hazard curves across subgroups (men/women, urban/rural, Han Chinese/ethnic minority). RESULTS: The prevalence of current smoking among men and women were 60.4% (95% CI 58.2% to 62.6%) and 5.1% (95% CI 4.3% to 5.9%), respectively. Smoking was more prevalent among men and women of lower education and less income, as well as rural and ethnic minority women. Among the current smokers, cigarette (80.7%) was the most commonly used tobacco product, followed by waterpipe (10.8%) and pipe tobacco (8.5%). The hazards of smoking initiation were low for both men and women before the age of 15 years (1% for men and 0.05% for women); and the hazards increased quickly from age 15 years and peaked at 19years (21.5% for men and 1.0% for women). Rural and ethnic minority women were at higher risk of smoking initiation than their counterparts between 15 years and 19 years of age (χ2=44.8, p<0.01; χ2=165.2, p<0.01) and no such difference was found in men. CONCLUSIONS: Findings of this study underscore the importance to implement tobacco prevention interventions among older teens and young adults in South-West China, especially for rural and ethnic minority women.