Frequency of steamed food consumption and risk of metabolic syndrome in Korean females:data from Korean Genome and Epidemiology Study / 한국영양학회지

ABSTRACT

Purpose@#This study aimed to investigate the association between steamed food intake and risk of metabolic syndrome (MetS) in Korean females. @*Methods@#Using Ansan/Ansung data of Korean Genome and Epidemiology Study, general characteristics, nutritional intake and biochemical and anthropometric markers of a total of 4,056 females aged 40 to 69 years were analyzed. MetS was defined following National Cholesterol Education Program Adult Treatment Panel III with some minor modifications.Logistic regression models were established to present the association between steamed food intake and the risk of MetS. Levels of food and nutrient intake by the frequency of steamed food intake and MetS phenotype were analyzed using general linear models. @*Results@#A total of 38.4% of females had MetS. Among them, 24.9% of females with MetS had steamed food more than 1-3 times per week, which reduced the risk for MetS by about 25% (95% confidence interval [CI], 0.650-0.865). However, such association was not evident when various lifestyle factors were considered in statistical models. In rural residents, the benefit of having more steamed food was observed (adjusted odds ratio 0.747; 95% CI, 0.583-0.958). The frequency of steamed food intake was associated with various food and nutritional intakes. However, trends in those did not differ by MetS phenotype. @*Conclusion@#Having steamed food more than 1-3 times per week may reduce the risk of MetS compared to those who had less steamed food in Korean females. This protective effect of steamed food intake may differ by lifestyle and environmental factors. Although a clear difference in food and nutritional intake was not observed in this study, steaming could be an effective cooking method for a healthy diet for disease prevention and management.