The relationship between food habits and physical activity and the IQ of primary school children.

BACKGROUND: Children's intelligence quotient (IQ) is influenced by various environmental and genetic variables. The current study aimed to determine how children's dietary choices and physical activity levels correlated with their IQ. METHODS: A total of 190 students (111 girls and 79 boys) between the ages of 8 and 10 were chosen randomly for this cross-sectional research. For all children, questionnaires were utilized to gather information on their anthropometry, socio-economic position, food habits, and 24-h memory. Children's physical activity questionnaire (CPAQ) was also used to gauge their level of physical activity. Raven's color progressive intelligence test was also used to gauge children's IQ. All the questions may be filled out online with the assistance of parents. SPSS software was used to gather and evaluate the generated data. RESULTS: Of 190 respondents, 79 (41.6%) are males, and 111 (58.4%) are girls. The results of the study showed that, a positive correlation between children's IQ and physical activity (P = 0.017, r = 0.17), if this relationship was not seen by gender. In addition, a positive correlation was observed between the IQ and food habits scores in all children (P = 0.001, r = 0.24), as well as by gender, that is, male (P = 0.04, r = 0.23) and female (P = 0.006, r = 0.26), which indicates that children with better food habits were associated with higher IQ. CONCLUSION: It was shown that elementary school children's IQ, food habits, and degree of physical activity are all positively correlated.

The association between diet quality index-international and inflammatory markers in Iranian overweight and obese women.

Objectives: The present study was conducted to evaluate whether there is a link between the diet quality index (DQI) and markers of systemic inflammation in Iranian overweight and obese women. Methods: This cross-sectional study included 200 Iranian overweight and obese women aged 18-48 years. The DQI-international (DQI-I) comprises four main components: variety, adequacy, moderation, and overall balance. Blood samples were collected in a fasted state to measure inflammatory markers. Results: After adjusting for age, body mass index (BMI), physical activity, total energy intake, economic status, education, supplement intake, age of starting obesity, and history of body mass loss, a marginally significant negative association was observed between the homeostasis model assessment of insulin resistance (HOMA-IR) and the DQI-I (ß: -0.015, 95% CI: -0.03, 0.000; p = 0.061). The results after adjustment showed that DQI-I has a negative association with high-sensitivity C-reactive protein (hs-CRP) concentrations (ß: -0.031, 95% CI: -0.104, -0.031; p = 0.023). Furthermore, negative associations were observed between the adequacy component and levels of HOMA-IR (ß: -0.025, 95% CI: -0.100, 0.047, p = 0.050) and hs-CRP (ß: -0.615, 95% CI: -1.191, -0.020; p = 0.045). In addition, negative associations were found between transforming growth factor-ß (TGF-ß) and balance score (ß: -6.270, 95% CI: -39.211, -3.661, p = 0.020), as well as HOMA-IR (ß: -0.080, 95% CI: -0.202, -0.000, p = 0.041) and chemoattractant protein-1 (MCP-1) (ß: -0.562, 95% CI: -11.414, -0.282, p = 0.021), with the various component. A marginally significant negative association between galectin 3 (Gal-3) and moderation score (ß: -0.451, 95% CI: -1.171, 0.060, p = 0.060) was found. In addition, a marginally significant inverse association was also established between hs-CRP and variety score (ß: -0.311, 95% CI: -0.970, 0.001, p = 0.052). The Receiver Operating characteristic (ROC) curve analysis demonstrated that DQI-I might better predict HOMA-IR with a cut point of 3.13 (AUC = 0.698, 0.511-0.699, p = 0.050). Conclusion: These findings showed that a higher adherence to diet quality and its components could probably be related to lowering the inflammatory markers considerably in overweight and obese women.

Inflammatory biomarkers in overweight and obese Iranian women are associated with polyphenol intake.

BACKGROUND: The evidence shows that obesity is associated with chronic inflammation in obese subjects. Polyphenols are a complex group of plant secondary metabolites that may play a role in reducing the risk of obesity and obesity-related diseases. Given the scarcity of evidence on the association between inflammatory markers and dietary polyphenols intake in overweight/obese Iranian women, the current study aims to investigate this link. METHOD: The present cross-sectional study was conducted on 391 overweight and obese Iranian women aged 18-48 years (body mass index (BMI) ≥ 25 kg/m2). A 147-item food frequency questionnaire (FFQ) was used to assess dietary intake, as well as anthropometric indices including weight, height, waist circumference (WC), and hip circumference (HC) and biochemistry parameters including triglyceride (TG), total cholesterol (Chole), low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-c), high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-c), serum glutamic pyruvic transaminase (SGPT), serum glutamic-oxaloacetic transaminase (SGOT), galactin-3 (Gal-3), monocyte chemoattractant protein-1 (MCP-1), transforming growth factor beta (TGF-ß), interleukin-1 beta (IL_1ß), plasminogen activator inhibitor-1 (PA-I), serum leptin concentrations, and C-reactive protein of high sensitivity (hs-CRP) in all participants. The inflammatory markers were assessed using the enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA). RESULT: The findings revealed a significant negative association between flavonoids intake and MCP-1 (P = 0.024), lignans intake and MCP-1 (P = 0.017), and Gal-3 (P = 0.032). These significant associations were observed between other polyphenols intake and IL_1ß (P = 0.014). There was also a significant positive association between other polyphenol intake and TGF-ß (P = 0.008) and between phenolic acid intake and TGF-ß (P = 0.014). CONCLUSION: Our findings suggest that a high polyphenol intake may help individuals to reduce systemic inflammation. Further large studies involving participants of different ages and genders are highly warranted.

The relationship between the intake of branched-chain and aromatic amino acids and individuals' sleep quality based on body mass index, gender, and age.

Sleep disorder is a relatively common problem that causes chronic conditions such as obesity, diabetes, and cardiovascular diseases. It is believed that diet regulates sleep. So, investigating the relationship between branched-chain amino acids (BCAAs) and aromatic amino acids intake with sleep quality based on age, gender and Body Mass Index (BMI) is important. A total of 172 males and females aged 18-65 participated in this study. The questionnaires were given online to them, included demographic information, food frequency questionnaire (FFQ), International Physical Activity Questionnaire, and Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index. The Chalder fatigue scale (CFQ) was also used to measure the extent and severity of fatigue. The intake of amino acids was investigated by FFQ. The relationship between amino acids intake and sleep quality was investigated using Pearson's test. The results showed that intake of energy, macronutrients, and some micronutrients had a significant relationship with the quality of sleep of men compared to that of women (P < 0.05). No difference in sleep duration was observed between the two genders. There was a significant, positive association between sleep duration and the intake of BCAA (CC = 0.205, P = 0.031) and aromatic amino acids (CC = 0.22, P = 0.02) in the participants with normal BMI. Significant differences were seen in the intake of BCAA according to BMI which these differences were between lean and obese people, lean and overweight people, obese and normal, and overweight people. It demonstrated that in individuals with normal BMI, amino acids, protein, and carbohydrate intake may affect sleep duration and with modification of these factors sleep quality may get better. More study is needed to confirm these findings.

Association of Mediterranean-DASH Intervention for Neurodegenerative Delay (MIND) diet and metabolically unhealthy overweight/obesity phenotypes among Iranian women: a cross sectional study.

PURPOSE: Paradoxes have been found in obesity, including individuals with metabolically healthy obesity (MHO) and metabolically unhealthy obesity (MUHO), and diet may be one of the reasons for the creation of these metabolic phenotypes. Hence, the purpose of the present study was to investigate the association of the Mediterranean-DASH intervention for neurodegenerative delay (MIND) diet with metabolically unhealthy overweight/obesity (MUHOW/O) phenotypes. METHODS: In this cross-sectional study, 229 overweight and obese women (body mass index (BMI) ≥ 25 kg/m2) aged 18-48 years were examined. Anthropometric measures and biochemical parameters were collected from all participants. The body composition of each participant was assessed using a bioelectrical impedance analyzer (BIA). The MIND diet score was determined based on 15 components using a valid and reliable food frequency questionnaire (FFQ) containing 147 items. Karelis criteria was used to determine metabolically healthy/unhealthy phenotype (MH/MUH). RESULTS: Among the participants, 72.5% of individuals were identified as MUH and 27.5% as MH, with a mean ± standard deviation (SD) age of 36.16 (8.33) years. The results of our analysis showed that after controlling for age, energy intake, BMI, and physical activity, there was no significant association observed between overweight/obesity phenotypes with tertile 2 (T2) (OR: 2.01, 95% CI: 0.86-4.17, P-value = 0.10), T3 (OR: 1.89, 95% CI: 0.86-4.17, P-value = 0.11) of MIND score, and only the odds of MUH relative to MH with a marginal significant decreasing trend was observed from the second to the third tertile (1.89 vs. 2.01) (P - trend = 0.06). Also, after additional adjustment for marital status, the nonsignificant association between overweight/obesity phenotypes with tertile 2 (T2) (OR: 2.13, 95% CI: 0.89-5.10, P-value = 0.08), T3 (OR: 1.87, 95% CI: 0.83-4.23, P-value = 0.12) of MIND score remained, and the odds of MUH relative to MH with a significant decreasing trend was observed with increasing tertiles (P-trend = 0.04). CONCLUSIONS: In conclusion, no significant associations were found between adherence to MIND diet with MUH, and only a significant downward trend in the odds of MUH was observed with increasing tertiles. We suggest further studies in this field.

The association of dietary approaches to stop hypertension (DASH) with the odds of diabetic nephropathy and metabolic markers in women: a case-control study.

OBJECTIVES: Epidemiologic studies have reported that diet is associated with diabetes and its complications through different pathways. We sought to examine the associations between the Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension (DASH) diet and the odds of diabetic nephropathy (DN) developing in Iranian women with existing type 2 diabetes. METHODS: In this case-control study, 105 women with DN and 105 controls, matched for age and diabetes duration, were selected from the Kowsar Diabetes Clinic in Semnan, Iran. DASH, estimated using dietary intake, was assessed using a validated and reliable food frequency questionnaire with 147 items. Anthropometric measurements were assessed for all subjects. Logistic regression was performed to examine the association between DASH and the odds of developing DN. RESULTS: After controlling for potential confounders, subjects in the highest intake of DASH diet adherence have 84% lower odds of DN, compared to those with the lowest intake (OR = 0.16, 95% CI = 0.07-0.34, P < 0.001). Among DASH diet subcategories, intakes of vegetables (80%), fruits (88%), nuts and legumes (87%), and low-fat dairy (73%) decreased the risk of DN after adjustment for confounders (P < 0.001). CONCLUSIONS: This study showed that the DASH diet is associated with lower odds of DN development in women with type 2 diabetes.

The association between glycemic index and glycemic load and quality of life among overweight and obese women: a cross-sectional study.

BACKGROUND: The association between different dietary approaches and quality of life (QoL) has been well-demonstrated in previous research. However, the relationship between glycemic index (GI) and glycemic load (GL) with different dimensions of QoL has not been established. Therefore, we aimed to investigate the relationship between GI and GL with QoL in overweight and obese women. METHODS: Two hundred seventy-six overweight and obese women (body mass index (BMI) ≥ 30 kg/m2), aged 18-64 years old, were included in this cross-sectional study. The amount of dietary intake and GI and GL indexes were established using a valid and reliable Food Frequency Questionnaire (FFQ) containing 147 items. Body composition (using bioimpedance analysis), anthropometrics, and physical activity were assessed. Insulin resistance (HOMA-IR) and hs-CRP were also measured, whilst QoL was measured using the SF-36 (short-form-36), self-administered, questionnaire. RESULT: Analyses were performed using multivariable linear regression, considering a wide range of confounding variables, such as age, physical activity, BMI, education, job, smoking, and marriage. We found a significant negative association between glycemic load and quality of life (ß = -0.07, 95%CI = -0.13_ -0.01, p = 0.01). No significant associations were observed between glycemic index and quality of life (ß = -0.03, 95%CI = -0.81_ 0.75, p = 0.93). CONCLUSION: We observed a significant negative association between QoL and GL, but not GI, among overweight and obese women in Iran. Our results need to be confirmed with further well-designed and adequately powered studies that control for clinical confounders.

Interaction between ultra-processed food intake and genetic risk score on mental health and sleep quality.

PURPOSE: Mental health and sleep quality are associated with genetics and nutrient and energy intake. The present study examined the association between ultra-processed food (UPF) intake and genetic risk score (GRS) and their interactions on mental health and sleep quality in Iranian women. METHODS: A cross-sectional study was conducted on 278 overweight and obese females aged between 18 and 56 years. According to the NOVA classification system, 37 food groups and beverages were collected using a 147-item semi-quantitative food frequency questionnaire (FFQ). The blood parameters of all participants were assessed. Mini-column kit (type G; Genall; Exgene) and the PCR-RFLP method were used to extract DNA and determine gene polymorphism, respectively. Three single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs), including Caveolin_1 (Cav_1), Melanocortin4 receptor (MC4R), and cryptochrome circadian regulator 1 (CRY1), were used to calculate GRS. The individual risk allele (0, 1, 2) for each SNP was calculated using the incremental genetic model. RESULTS: After controlling for confounders, a significant interaction was found for depression (ß = 0.026, 95% CI 0.003, 0.049, P = 0.028) and depression anxiety stress scales (DASS) score (ß = 0.059, 95% CI 0.001, 0.117, P = 0.046) on the NOVA classification system and GRS. CONCLUSIONS: The findings of this study showed a significant interaction between GRS and the NOVA classification system on mental disorders, including depression, DASS score and stress. There was also a significant relationship between the NOVA classification system and anxiety, DASS score, sleep quality and depression. Furthermore, a partially significant association was observed between GRS and stress. LEVEL OF EVIDENCE: Level V, cross-sectional descriptive study.

The Association of Inflammatory Markers, IL-1α and TGF-ß, with Dietary Insulin Load and Dietary Insulin Index in Overweight and Obese Women with Healthy and Unhealthy Metabolic Phenotypes: A Cross-Sectional Study.

Context Research has shown IL-1α might play a role in the associations between the MH group and DII and DIL. Objective. We evaluated the association of inflammatory markers, IL-1α and TGF-ß, with dietary insulin load and index in women with healthy and unhealthy obesity phenotypes. Materials and Methods. 228 obese/overweight women aged 18-48 years were included in this study. Biochemical factors were obtained from blood samples. Body composition, anthropometric measures, and physical activity assessments were performed. Dietary intakes, DII, and DIL were assessed. Results. Significant associations were observed between the MH group and the DII group (OR = 2.142, 95% CI = 1.421, 2.850, and p = 0.040), in which IL-1α may play a role. Discussion and Conclusion. Significant associations were observed between the MH group and DII. IL-1α might play a role in these associations.

Is there any putative mediatory role of inflammatory markers on the association between ultra-processed foods and resting metabolic rate?

The resting metabolic rate (RMR) represents the largest component of total daily energy expenditure. The sale of ultra-processed foods (UPF) is increasing globally; however, UPF can have many adverse effects, including increasing inflammatory markers and altering RMRs. This cross-sectional study included 285 healthy overweight and obese women. Anthropometric measurements were evaluated using a bioelectrical impedance analyzer InBody 770 scanner. High-sensitivity C-reactive protein (hs-CRP), plasminogen activator-1 (PAI-1), monocyte chemoattractant protein (MCP-1), and interleukin-1 beta (IL-1ß) blood levels were measured after a 12-h fasting. Indirect calorimetry was used to evaluate the RMR by using the Weir equation, and RMR deviation (RMR estimated - RMR actual), RMR per body mass index (BMI), and free fat mass (FFM) were estimated. A validated food frequency questionnaire (FFQ) was used, and seven groups of UPFs were extracted based on the NOVA method. A negative association between the RMR [ß = -0.159, 95% confidence interval (CI): -0.471, -0.052, P = 0.044], RMR per BMI (ß = -0.014, 95% CI: -0.025, -0.006, P = 0.036), and RMR per FFM (ß = -0.241, 95% CI: -0.006, -0.000, P = 0.041) using the NOVA score was observed after adjusting for confounders. This association disappeared after inclusion of each inflammatory marker. All the markers may inversely mediate the relationship between the mentioned variables and the NOVA score. hs-CRP and MCP-1 also had a negative effect on the relationship between the NOVA score and RMR deviation. Finally, UPF intake is likely related with the RMR, mediated through changes in the production of hs-CRP, PAI-1, MCP-1, and IL-1ß.