Cardiovascular disease risk factors and frailty syndrome in community-dwelling older adults: Results from the Amirkola Health and Aging Project Cohort Study.

BACKGROUND: Early diagnosis and control of risk factors affecting frailty syndrome (FS) in older adults may lead to changes in the health/disease process, prevention of disability and dependency in the older adults, and reduction of health care costs and mortality rates. The aim of this study was to determine the predictive role of CVD risk factors and FS in community-dwelling older adults of Amirkola city in Iran. METHODS: This descriptive-analytic cross-sectional study is part of the second phase of the Amirkola Health and Aging Project (AHAP) cohort study conducted since 2011 on all individuals ≥ 60 years in the city of Amirkola in northern Iran. Totally, 1000 older adults were included in the study and divided into three groups: frail (n = 299), pre-frail (n = 455), and non-frail (n = 246) older adults. In the present study, age ≥ 60 years, female sex, fasting blood sugar (FBS) ≥ 126 mg/dl, affected diabetes mellitus (DM), body mass index (BMI) ≥ 27 kg/m², waist circumference (WC) or abdominal obesity > 102 cm in men and > 88 cm in women, low-density lipoprotein (LDL) > 100 mg/dl, triglyceride > 150 mg/dl, cholesterol > 200 mg/dl, high-density lipoprotein (HDL) < 40 mg/dl and blood pressure (BP) > 90/140 mmHg, uric acid > 7 mg/dl and a positive smoking history were considered CVD risk factors. RESULTS: The results showed that with each centimeter increase in WC, the odds of frailty compared with non-frailty was 79% higher, and the odds of frailty compared with pre-frailty was 1.43 times higher in older adults. In addition, the prevalence of pre-frailty compared with non-frailty, pre-frailty, and non-frailty was 10.59 times, 6.08 times, and 73.83 times higher in older individuals > 84 years old, respectively. The results of the present study indicated that the prevalence of pre-frailty compared with non-frailty, frailty compared with pre-frailty, and frailty compared with non-frailty was 2.86 times, 3.01 times, and 14.83 times higher in older adults women, respectively. The comparison between frail and non-frail groups represented that in DM older adults, the prevalence of frailty compared with non-frailty was 1.84 times higher and that of frailty compared with pre-frailty was 98% higher. The older adults with an FBS ≥ 126 mg/dl were 53% more likely to become frail, and with each unit increase in uric acid, the odds of becoming frail increased 2.05 times compared with non-frail older adults, and pre-frail compared with non-frail increased 99%. CONCLUSION: The results demonstrated that CVD risk factors predictive of FS included central obesity, age > 84 years, female sex, DM, FBS ≥ 126, and uric acid > 7. This problem highlights the need for preventive strategies in the older adults who are simultaneously vulnerable to CVD and frailty.

Effects of Frailty Syndrome on Osteoporosis, Focusing on the Mediating Effect of Muscle Strength and Balance in Community-Dwelling Older Adults (≥60 years) in Iran: Results From the Amirkola Health and Aging Project Cohort Study.

Introduction: For older adults, maintaining muscle strength and balance is crucial to preserve an upright posture and independently manage their basic activities of daily living (ADL). This study aimed to examine whether muscle strength and balance mediate the relationship between frailty syndrome (FS) and osteoporosis in a large sample of community-dwelling older adults. Material and Methods: This cross-sectional study is part of the second phase (2016-2017) of the Amirkola Health and Ageing Project (AHAP), a cohort study conducted on all elderly aged 60 and over in Amirkola, Northern Iran, since 2011. Data from 2018 older adults were collected by a trained person using bone mineral density (BMD), frailty index, activities of daily living (ADL), instrumental activities of daily living (IADL), handgrip strength (HGS), quadriceps muscle strength (QMS), Berg Balance Scale (BBS), and Timed Up and Go test (TUG test) and analyzed using analysis of variance, chi-square, and path analysis tests. Results: The mean indices of femoral neck BMD and lumbar spine BMD, HGS, QMS, BBS, ADL, and IADL were lower in the frail older adults than in the pre-frail and non-frail older adults. In addition, the mean TUG test level was higher in the frail older adults than in the non-frail and pre-frail older adults. The results of the present study have indicated that frailty is significantly related to osteoporosis, and that balance and muscle strength can predict osteoporosis; these variables play a mediating role in the relationship between frailty and osteoporosis. Conclusion: From the results of the present study, it can be concluded that frailty may increase the odds of osteoporosis. The results of the current study have indicated that balance (BBS and TUG test) and muscle strength (HGS and QMS) are associated with osteoporosis and these variables play a mediating role in the relationship between frailty and osteoporosis.

Investigating the mediating role of food involvement in the relationship between eating restrictions, nutritional knowledge, and dietary patterns in adults.

People's Dietary Patterns (DPs) are influenced by culture and ethnicity, and their identification requires a holistic assessment of diet. DP reflects dietary behaviors, and its analysis may provide further details about the dietary etiology of chronic diseases. By examining people's DP and related factors, more practical solutions can be proposed to prevent overweight, obesity, and related diseases. This study aimed to describe DP, Eating Restrictions (ER), Food Involvement (FI), Nutrition Knowledge (NK), and anthropometric indices in Iranian adults and determine the mediating role of FI in the relationship between ER, NK, and DP. A descriptive cross-sectional study was conducted using the structural equation modeling approach. The study was conducted on 2421 adults in Mazandaran Province, northern Iran. The Eating Restrictions Questionnaire (ERQ), the Food Involvement Inventory (FII), the komPAN questionnaire, and a demographic characteristics and anthropometric indices questionnaire were used to collect data. We also measured the seven major food groups, the Diet Quality Scores (DQS), and the six dietary indices, including the pro-Healthy-Diet-Index (pHDI-15), non-Healthy Diet-Index (nHDI-16), high-Glycemic-Diet-Index-7 (hGIDI-7), low-Glycaemic-Diet-Index-4 (lGIDI-4), high-Sugar-Diet-Index-4 (hSDI-4), and high-sugar product (hSFDI-6) and compared their values by gender and four BMI groups. The prevalence of ER and FI was 6.25% and 49.1%, respectively. NK was insufficient for 43.1% of the participants. Most participants (71.2%) had low DQS scores on pHDI-15 and moderate scores (52.9%) on nHDI-16. DQS scores were low in 64.8% of participants in the lGIDI-4 food group, while 71.7%, 92.6%, and 77.2% possessed moderate scores in the hGIDI-7, hSFDI-6, and hSDI-4 food groups, respectively. The mean pHDI-15 and lGIDI-4 indices were higher in women than in men. The amount of unhealthy food indices (nHDI-16, hGIDI-7, hSDI-4, and hSFDI-6) was higher in lean, overweight, and obese people than in people with a normal BMI. The structural model assumed between ER and DP and the mediating role of FI fit well with Iranian adults. Moreover, FI had a mediating role in the relationship between NK and pHDI_15 (Indirect Effects = 0.05, P<0.05) and nHDI_16 (Indirect Effects = -0.07, P<0.01). Most participants are small portions of the healthy food groups and the low glycemic foods, and FI plays a mediating role in the relationship between NK and ER with DP. Therefore, it is necessary to pay attention to the role of FI as a mediating variable in interventions based on reducing ER, increasing NK, and shifting DP from unhealthy to healthy.

Evaluation of psychometric properties of the eating restriction questionnaire and food involvement inventory in Iranian adults.

The objectives of this study were to translate and validate the Persian version of the food involvement inventory (FII) and eating restriction questionnaire (ERQ) and to determine the measurement invariance based on gender, body mass index (BMI) status, and age. This cross-sectional study included 1100 Iranian adults. Exploratory factor analysis (EFA) and confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) were used to evaluate the construct validity of FII and ERQ. Convergent and discriminant validity, measurement invariance in gender, BMI and age, reliability including internal consistency, and stability were investigated for FII and ERQ. The results showed that the four-factor construct of the FII and the one-factor construct of the ERQ were 44.27% and 55.12% of the total variance, respectively. The factor loadings of all items were > .3 in both scales and none of the items were deleted. Fitting indices indicated that the four-factor construct of the FII and the one-factor construct of the ERQ had a good and acceptable fit among the Iranian adults. The Persian versions of the FII and ERQ, translated into Persian and localized according to international standards, had high construct, convergent and discriminant validity as well as high reliability.

Evaluation of psychometric properties of dietary habits, lifestyle, food frequency consumption, and nutritional beliefs (KomPAN) questionnaire in Iranian adults.

Background: Adherence to unhealthy dietary patterns is a major cause of overweight and obesity in adults. Therefore, it is recommended that assessment and modification of unhealthy lifestyle should be included in prevention programs. To achieve this goal, it is necessary to evaluate the status of dietary patterns in adults with valid and reliable tools. Thus, the aims of the present study were to translate the KomPAN questionnaire, evaluate its psychometric properties in Iranian adults and measure 4 dietary indices including high-saturated-fats-Diet-Index-8 (hSFDI-8), high-Sugar- Diet-Index-4 (hSDI-4), low-Glycaemic-Diet-Index-4 (LGIDI-4) and high- Glycaemic-Diet-Index-7 (hGIDI-7) based on 3 groups of body mass index (BMI) (BMI = 18.5-24.9, BMI = 25-29.9 and BMI ≥ 30), gender, educational level, income status, and age. Methods: The KomPAN questionnaire included 4 scales nutrition beliefs (NB), lifestyle, food frequency consumption (FFC), dietary habits (DH) and after its translation from English into Persian, the psychometric properties of all 4 scales (face and content validity) were evaluated. For both FFC and NB scales, the construct validity was assessed through exploratory factor analysis (EFA), confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) and convergent and discriminant validity, the internal consistency was evaluated using the Cronbach's alpha coefficient, McDonald's omega (Ω) and Theta coefficient (θ), as well as the stability was assessed via intraclass correlation coefficient (ICC). Cross-classification and Kappa statistics were evaluated for both DH and lifestyle scales. Then, 4 dietary indices were measured in terms of demographic variables. Results: The cross-classification of DH (93.96%) and lifestyle (95.87%) scales indicated the percentage of correct classification in the test-retest scales. The Kappa statistic was >0.4 and its value was acceptable. The mean Kappa statistics were 0.734 and 0.865 for the DH and lifestyle scales, respectively. The fit indices showed that the two-factor construct of the FFC scale and the one-factor construct of the NB scale had a good and acceptable fit among the Iranian adults. The FFC and NB scales had acceptable internal consistency and stability. Conclusion: It is recommended that other researchers use the KomPAN questionnaire to identify DH, FFC, NB and lifestyle as well as measure diet quality scores in the adult community.