Ultra-processed foods intake in relation to metabolic health status, serum brain-derived neurotrophic factor and adropin levels in adults.

BACKGROUND: In recent years, there has been a lot of discussion over the impact of ultra-processed foods (UPFs) intake on overall health of subjects. However, the association between UPFs intake and metabolic unhealthy (MU) status is still in a state of ambiguity. The current study assessed the relationship between UPFs intake and MU status with regard to brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) and adropin levels. METHODS: A sample of Iranian adults (aged 20-65 years) was selected to participate in this cross-sectional study using a multistage cluster random-sampling method. UPFs intake was assessed by a validated food frequency questionnaire and NOVA classification. Concentrations of metabolic parameters, BDNF and adropin were determined through fasting blood samples. MU status was assessed according to the criteria proposed by Wildman. RESULTS: The overall prevalence of MU phenotype among study participants (n = 527) was 42.5%. Higher intake of UPFs was associated with elevated odds of MU status in multivariable-adjusted model (ORT3 vs. T1=1.88; 95%CI: 1.02-3.45). Moreover, a positive association was observed between UPFs intake and hypertriglyceridemia after controlling all confounders (ORT3 vs. T1=2.07; 95%CI: 1.15-3.73). However, each tertile increase in UPFs intake was not significantly associated with serum BDNF ([Formula: see text]=0.15; 95%CI: -0.05, 0.34; P = 0.14) and adropin ([Formula: see text]=-1.37; 95%CI: -6.16, 3.42; P = 0.58) levels in multivariable-adjusted linear regression models. CONCLUSION: Our findings suggested that higher consumption of UPFs was related to increased likelihood of MU status among a sample of Iranian adults. Further longitudinal studies are needed to verify the directionality and generalizability of the results to all adult populations.

Association between methyl donor nutrients and metabolic health status in overweight and obese adolescents.

Limited evidence is available regarding the association of methyl donor nutrients and adolescents' metabolic health. Therefore, we investigated the relation between a combination of methyl donor nutrients and metabolic health status of overweight and obese Iranian adolescents. In this cross-sectional study, 203 overweight/obese adolescents were included, using a multistage cluster random-sampling method. Dietary intakes were assessed by a validated food frequency questionnaire. Methyl donor nutrient score (MDNS) was constructed based on deciles of vitamins B2, B6, B9, B12, methionine, choline and betaine. Glycemic profile, lipid profile, blood pressure and anthropometric indices were collected. Participants were classified as metabolically healthy obese or unhealthy obese (MUO) based on International Diabetes Federation (IDF) and IDF/Homeostasis Model Assessment Insulin Resistance (HOMA-IR) definitions. Mean age of adolescents was 13.98 [Formula: see text] 1.61 y and 50.2% of them was girls. After controlling all of the confounders, individuals in the top tertile of MDNS, had lower odds of MUO (OR 0.36; 95% CI 0.13-0.95) according to IFD criteria. Considering IDF/HOMA-IR criteria, an inverse marginally significant association was observed between the highest tertile of MDNS and odds of MUO (OR 0.36; 95% CI 0.12-1.02) in the fully-adjusted model. Furthermore, significant inverse association was found between each unit increase in MDNS and odds of MUO based on IDF criteria, but not for IDF/HOMA-IR definition. We found that overweight/obese adolescents with higher dietary intakes of methyl donor nutrients were less likely to be metabolically unhealthy. Further studies are needed to confirm the findings.