Association of menopausal status with body composition and anthropometric indices in Korean women.

BACKGROUND: Menopause induces various health problems and is associated with obesity, but the association between menopausal status and obesity is unclear due to several confounding factors, such as aging and reduced physical activity. The objective of this study was to examine the association of menopausal status with anthropometric indices and body composition indices in South Korean women. METHODS: In this cross-sectional study, a total of 734 subjects (297 postmenopausal women, 437 premenopausal women) from five university hospitals in South Korea were included. A binary logistic regression analysis was performed to examine the association of menopause with anthropometric indices and body composition indices. RESULTS: Height, body mass index, waist-to-height ratio, waist-to-hip ratio, and neck, armpit, chest, rib, waist, iliac, and hip circumferences were associated with menopausal status in the crude analysis, but these associations disappeared in the adjusted models. Among the body composition indices, menopausal status was strongly associated with total body water, skeletal muscle mass, body fat mass, and body fat percentage in the crude analysis. However, the associations with body fat mass and body fat percentage disappeared in the adjusted models. Only the associations with total body water and skeletal muscle mass remained in the adjusted models. CONCLUSION: Most of the anthropometric indices and body composition indices were not associated with menopausal status, but total body water and skeletal muscle mass were significantly lower in postmenopausal women than in premenopausal women.

Association of relative hand grip strength with myocardial infarction and angina pectoris in the Korean population: a large-scale cross-sectional study.

BACKGROUND: Low hand grip strength (HGS) is associated with the risk of cardiovascular diseases, but the association between HGS and myocardial infarction/angina pectoris (MIAP) is unclear. Furthermore, there have been no studies examining the associations of MIAP with anthropometric indices, absolute HGS indices, and relative HGS indices calculated by dividing absolute HGS values by body mass index (BMI), waist circumference (WC), waist-to-height ratio (WHtR), or weight values. Therefore, the objective of this study was to examine the associations of MIAP with absolute and relative HGS combined with several anthropometric indices. METHODS: In this large-scale cross-sectional study, a total of 12,963 subjects from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey were included. Odds ratios and 95% confidence intervals for the associations of MIAP with anthropometric indices, absolute HGS indices, and relative HGS indices were computed from binary logistic regression models. We built 3 models: a crude model, a model that was adjusted for age (Model 1), and a model that was adjusted for other relevant covariates (Model 2). RESULTS: For men, the average age was 61.55 ± 0.16 years in the MIAP group and 66.49 ± 0.61 years in the non-MIAP group. For women, the average age was 61.99 ± 0.14 years in the MIAP group and 70.48 ± 0.61 years in the non-MIAP group. For both sexes, the MIAP group had lower diastolic blood pressure, shorter stature, greater WC, and a greater WHtR than did the non-MIAP group, and women tended to have greater systolic blood pressure, weight, and BMI than in men. HGS was strongly associated with the risk of MIAP in the Korean population. In men, relative HGS indices combined with WC and the WHtR had greater associations with MIAP than did the anthropometric indices and absolute HGS indices. However, in women, anthropometric indices, including weight, BMI, WC, and WHtR, were more strongly associated with MIAP than were absolute and relative HGS indices, unlike in men. When comparing absolute and relative HGS indices in women, relative HGS indices combined with BMI and weight was more strongly related to MIAP than was absolute HGS indices. CONCLUSIONS: MIAP might be better identified by relative HGS than absolute HGS in both sexes. The overall magnitudes of the associations of MIAP with absolute and relative HGS are greater in men than in women.

Association between anemia and grip strength indices combined with anthropometry in the Korean population.

Anemia is common in older people and is associated with low hand grip strength (HGS). However, there is no study of the association of anemia with both absolute and various relative HGS indices. Therefore, the objectives of this study are to examine the association of anemia with absolute and relative HGS indices and to evaluate whether the relative HGS indices are useful as risk indices of anemia. In this large-scale cross-sectional study, we analyzed the association of anemia with anthropometric indices, absolute HGS indices, and relative HGS indices using both crude and adjusted binary logistic regression models. A total of 24,022 participants were included in the final analysis. Anemia was defined as a blood hemoglobin concentration of less than 13.0 g/dL for men, less than 11.0 g/dL for pregnant women, and less than 12.0 g/dL for nonpregnant women. We considered covariates such as residential area, marital status, education level, occupation, household income, alcohol consumption, smoking status, muscular exercise, walking exercise, blood pressure, and age for men, while for women, we also included menopause. The mean ages of the subjects in this study were 51.89 ± 0.19 years in the nonanemic group and 66.56 ± 0.61 in the anemic group in men and 52.55 ± 0.19 in the nonanemic group and 51.85 ± 0.44 in the anemic group in women. The number of anemic patients was 570 (5.5%) in men and 1638 (12%) in women. The mean HGS value in the dominant hand was 38.97 ± 0.11 in the nonanemic group and 30.84 ± 0.38 in the anemic group in men and 22.64 ± 0.07 in the nonanemic group and 21.85 ± 0.16 in the anemic group in women. Age was highly associated with anemia in men but not in women. Absolute HGS indices, such as the dominant HGS index and both HGS indices, were negatively associated with anemia in both sexes in all crude and adjusted models. All relative HGS indices were associated with anemia in men, but in women, only dominant HGS divided by height and both HGS divided by height were related to anemia status in all models. The associations between anemia and absolute and relative HGS indices were significantly high in men, while in women, these associations were of moderate strength. Anemia was negatively associated with HGS in the Korean population. The strengths of the associations of anemia with the absolute and relative HGS indices showing the highest association with anemia were similar. Therefore, there is no need to use relative HGS indices as risk factors for anemia, and absolute HGS indices, as easily obtained and cost-effective measurement, are suitable.

Risk factors for stroke among anthropometric indices and lipid profiles in the Korean population: a large-scale cross-sectional study.

Stroke is strongly associated with death and disability. However, the associations between stroke and lipid profiles such as total cholesterol, triglycerides, high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-C), and red blood cells (RBCs) and anthropometric indices such as waist circumference and waist-to-height ratio (WHtR) remain unclear. The objective of this study was to investigate these relationships in a Korean population. This large-scale cross-sectional study included data from 38,190 subjects collected from 2010 to 2018 by the Korea National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (KNHANES). Simple logistic regression models and multiple logistic regression models were used to evaluate the association of stroke with lipid profiles and anthropometric indices in the crude model, adjusted Model 1, and fully adjusted Model 2. In men, stroke was negatively associated with height, weight, and hematocrit level. Total cholesterol and triglycerides were strongly negatively associated with stroke in Model 2. Creatinine level and stroke were weakly associated. Additionally, height, weight, total cholesterol, triglycerides, and hematocrit and creatinine levels were associated with stroke both before and after adjustment. In women, in Model 2, stroke was positively associated with height, weight, and creatinine level. A strong negative association was found between total cholesterol and stroke. Stroke was negatively associated with hemoglobin level, hematocrit level, and RBCs. Additionally, total cholesterol, hemoglobin level, hematocrit level, creatinine level, and RBCs were associated with stroke both before and after adjustment. Weight and height were more closely associated with stroke than waist circumference and WHtR in Korean men. Our results suggested that the association of stroke with triglycerides, height, and weight differed according to sex and that HDL-C was not associated with stroke in people of either sex.

Association of myocardial infarction and angina pectoris with obesity and biochemical indices in the South Korean population.

The best obesity index for myocardial infarction or angina pectoris (MIAP) risk assessment remains controversial. Furthermore, the association between biochemical indices and these diseases is unclear. This study examined associations of obesity and biochemical indices with MIAP in the Korean population. This large-scale cross-sectional study was based on the Korea National Health and Nutrition Survey dataset from 2010 to 2019. A total of 22,509 subjects (9452 men and 13,057 women) aged ≥ 50 years were included. Participants consisted of 21,426 individuals without MIAP (men = 8869, women = 12,557) and 1083 with MIAP (men = 583, women = 500). Binary logistic regression was performed to examine the association of MIAP with obesity and biochemical indices. The prevalence of MIAP in Korean adults aged ≥ 50 years was 4.81% (6.57% among men, 3.98% among women). MIAP was more strongly associated with total cholesterol than other variables in men (adjusted OR = 0.436 [0.384-0.495], adjusted p < 0.001) and women (adjusted OR = 0.541 [0.475-0.618], adjusted p < 0.001). The waist-to-height ratio (adjusted OR = 1.325 [1.082-1.623], adjusted p = 0.007) and waist circumference (adjusted OR = 1.290 [1.072-1.553], adjusted p = 0.007) showed a significant association with MIAP in men, with no association between obesity indices and MIAP in women after adjustment. The association between biochemical indices and MIAP differed slightly according to sex. Only total cholesterol, creatinine, and platelets were associated with MIAP in both men and women.

Risk factors for hypertension and diabetes comorbidity in a Korean population: A cross-sectional study.

BACKGROUND: Hypertension and diabetes are risk factors for severe cardiovascular disease and are prevalent comorbidities. No studies have examined the associations of various risk factors related to anthropometry, bone mineral density and body composition of specific body regions with hypertension and diabetes comorbidity (HDC). This study explored the association between HDC and various risk factors related to specific body regions. METHOD: A total of 7,978 subjects (3,451 men and 4,527 women) aged ≥ 50 years were included in the analysis. A binary logistic regression analysis based on complex sample data analysis was conducted to examine associations between the normal and diabetes groups, between the normal and hypertension groups, and between the normal and HDC groups. RESULTS: Among Korean adults aged ≥ 50 years, 11.27% of men and 10.05% of women had both diabetes and hypertension. The HDC prevalence was higher in men than in women. In men, waist-to-height ratio (WHtR, adjusted OR = 1.63 [1.22-2.18], adjusted p<0.001) exhibited a more significant association with HDC than other indices, left leg fat mass (adjusted OR = 0.61 [0.45-0.81], adjusted p = 0.0009) and right leg fat mass (adjusted OR = 0.60 [0.45-0.81], adjusted p = 0.0007) displayed strong negative associations with diabetes, and left leg lean mass (adjusted OR = 0.77 [0.67-0.89], adjusted p = 0.0002) and trunk fat mass (adjusted OR = 1.28 [1.07-1.52], adjusted p = 0.0062) were significantly associated with hypertension. In women, left leg fat mass (adjusted OR = 0.29 [0.22-0.39], adjusted p<0.0001) and right leg fat mass (adjusted OR = 0.32 [0.23-0.45], adjusted p<0.0001) exhibited strong negative associations with HDC, waist circumference (WC) (adjusted OR = 2.15 [1.40-3.30], adjusted p = 0.0005) showed a stronger association with diabetes than did other indices, and WC (adjusted OR = 1.39 [1.11-1.74], adjusted p = 0.0040) and WHtR (adjusted OR = 1.39 [1.09-1.76], adjusted p = 0.0075) were significantly associated with hypertension. DISCUSSION: HDC was more strongly associated with fat and lean mass than diabetes and hypertension. The association between HDC and body fat variables was more robust in women than in men.

Anthropometric, biochemical, and nutritional risk factors for osteoporosis in Korean adults based on a large cross-sectional study.

BACKGROUND: Osteoporosis a common bone disorder characterized by decreases in bone mass, tension, and strength. Although many previous studies worldwide have sought to identify the risk factors for osteoporosis, studies that simultaneously examine a variety of factors, such as biochemical, anthropometric and nutritional components, are very rare. Therefore, the objective of this study was to simultaneously examine the association of osteoporosis with biochemical profiles, anthropometric factors, and nutritional components in a large-scale cross-sectional study. METHOD: This cross-sectional study was based on data from the Korea National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (KNHANES VI-VII) from 2015 to 2018. Based on data from 16,454 participants, logistic regression was used to examine the association between various parameters in a crude analysis and in models adjusted for confounders. RESULTS: In men, osteoporosis was significantly associated with the anthropometric variables height and weight; the biochemical components hemoglobin, hematocrit, urea nitrogen and urine pH and creatinine; and the nutritional components total food intake, energy, water, protein, phosphorus, and kalium. However, these associations disappeared in adjusted model 2. In women, osteoporosis was significantly related to the anthropometric measures height, weight, and systolic blood pressure; the biochemical components hemoglobin, hematocrit and urine pH; and the nutritional components total food intake, water, calcium, phosphorus, and kalium. Most of these associations were maintained in the adjusted models. CONCLUSION: Osteoporosis was linked to various anthropometric, biochemical and urine and nutritional components in Korean women, but the association between osteoporosis and risk factors differed according to sex.

Association of depressive disorder with biochemical and anthropometric indices in adult men and women.

Depression is a common psychiatric disorder. Although many risk factors for depression have been reported, the associations of biochemical and anthropometric indices with depressive disorder remain unclear. The objective of this study was to assess whether there are significant associations of depressive disorder with biochemical and obesity indices. This study was based on data from the Korea National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey from 2007 to 2018, and logistic regression was performed to examine the association of depression with biochemical and obesity indices. A total of 33,993 subjects were included in the analyses. Study subjects consisted of 13,178 men in the control group (mean age of 51.12 years), 509 men in the depression group (53.67), 18,279 women in the control group (50.5), and 2027 women in the depression group (55.39). Among men, the depression group was significantly more likely to have a lower height and weight than the control group. Compared to the control group, the depression group was more likely to have higher triglyceride levels and tended to have lower hematocrit and blood urea nitrogen (BUN) levels. Among women, the depression group was more likely to have higher triglyceride, aspartate aminotransferase (AST), BUN, and creatinine levels and lower high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-C), hematocrit, and red blood cell counts. Several biochemical and anthropometric indices used in this study were associated with depressive disorder, but these associations may differ according to sex.

Comparison of anthropometric and body composition indices in the identification of metabolic risk factors.

Whether anthropometric or body composition indices are better indicators of metabolic risk remains unclear. The objectives of this study were to compare the association of metabolic risk factors with anthropometric and body composition indices and to identify the better indicators for risk factors in a large-scale Korean population. In this cross-sectional study, the associations of body mass index (BMI), waist circumference (WC), and waist-to-height ratio (WHtR) as anthropometric indices and trunk fat mass (TFM), percent trunk fat mass (%TFM), whole-body total fat mass (WBTFM), and percent whole-body total fat mass (%WBTFM) as body composition indices with metabolic risk factors were compared by complex-samples multiple logistic regression models based on complex-sample survey data. In men, WHtR, BMI, and TFM were similarly associated with hypertension. Diabetes, hyperlipidemia, and hypo-high-density lipoprotein (HDL) cholesterolemia tended to be more strongly associated with WHtR and WC than body composition indices. Hypertriglyceridemia and hypercholesterolemia were more strongly associated with WHtR and %TFM than other indices. In women, hypertension tended to be more strongly associated with WHtR than other indices. TFM, %TFM, and WHtR were similarly associated with hyperlipidemia. Diabetes and hypo-HDL cholesterolemia were more strongly associated with WHtR and WC than body composition indices. Hypertriglyceridemia and hypercholesterolemia were more strongly associated with WHtR and %TFM than other indices. Among six metabolic risk factors, the validity and utility of the anthropometric indices in identifying risk factors tended to be similar to or better than those of the body composition indices, except for hypertension and hypercholesterolemia in men and hyperlipidemia and hypercholesterolemia in women.

Prediction of Hypertension Based on Facial Complexion.

This study aims to investigate the association between hypertension and facial complexion and determine whether facial complexion is a predictor for hypertension. Using the Commission internationale de l'éclairage L*a*b* (CIELAB) color space, the facial complexion variables of 1099 subjects were extracted in three regions (forehead, cheek, and nose) and the total face. Logistic regression was performed to analyze the association between hypertension and individual color variables. Four variable selection methods were also used to assess the association between hypertension and combined complexion variables and to compare the predictive powers of the models. The a* (green-red) complexion variables were identified as strong predictors in all facial regions in the crude analysis for both genders. However, this association in men disappeared, and L* (lightness) variables in women became the strongest predictors after adjusting for age and body mass index. Among the four prediction models based on combined complexion variables, the Bayesian approach obtained the best predictive in men. In women, models using three different methods but not the stepwise Akaike information criterion (AIC) obtained similar AUC values between 0.82 and 0.83. The use of combined facial complexion variables slightly improved the predictive power of hypertension in all four of the models compared with the use of individual variables.

The number of household members as a risk factor for peptic ulcer disease.

Peptic ulcer disease (PUD) is caused by many sociodemographic and economic risk factors other than H. pylori infection. However, no studies reported an association between PUD and the number of household members. We showed the number of family members affected by PUD based on sex in a Korean population. This cross-sectional study used 1998-2009 data from the Korea National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey of the Korea Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Multiple binary logistic regression models adjusted for confounders were constructed to analyze the association of PUD with the number of household members. The number of household members was associated with PUD, age, body mass index (BMI), waist circumference, systolic blood pressure, hemoglobin, glucose, location (urban/rural), income, education level, stress, current drinking, and smoking in both sexes. Men with other household members had a higher PUD risk compared to men or women living alone (reference), and the opposite was observed for women. Men with 4 household members had a higher PUD risk than men living alone in the model adjusted for age, BMI, income, location, education, and stress (OR = 2.04 [95% CI 1.28-3.27], p value = .003). Women with more than 6 household members had a lower PUD risk than women living alone in the adjusted model (OR = 0.50 [0.33-0.75], p value = .001). Women with more household members had a lower PUD risk. However, more men had PUD than women regardless of the number of household members.

Identification of metabolic syndrome using phenotypes consisting of triglyceride levels with anthropometric indices in Korean adults.

BACKGROUND: The metabolic syndrome (MetS) has shown strong associations with the hypertriglyceridemic waist (HW) phenotype. The best anthropometric indicator of MetS remains controversial. Furthermore, no studies have investigated alternative indices that could replace waist circumference in the HW phenotype. The objectives of this study were to find the best indicator of MetS among anthropometric indices and to examine the predictive power of phenotypes consisting of triglyceride levels with anthropometric indices. METHODS: A total of 12,025 subjects participated in this retrospective cross-sectional study. All subjects were recruited between November 2016 and August 2007 from hospitals in 28 urban and rural regions in South Korea. The data analyzed in this study were obtained from the Korean Health and Genome Epidemiology Study database and the Korea Institute of Oriental Medicine. RESULTS: The proportion of patients with MetS ranged from 9 to 57% according to age and gender groups. Waist circumference (WC) was best indicator of MetS in men of all age groups. However, in women aged 40-49 years, the waist-to-height ratio (WHtR) was the best indicator of MetS. Rib circumference and chest circumference were the strongest indicators in women aged 50-59 years and 70-79 years, respectively. The combination of WC and triglyceride (TG) was the best indicator of MetS in men and women overall. However, interestingly, the best indicator was TG + WHtR in women aged 40-49 years and TG + forehead-to-waist ratio in women aged 70-79 years. CONCLUSIONS: The best indicator of MetS in terms of individual anthropometric indices and the various phenotypes combining a single anthropometric index with TG may differ subtly according to age group in women, but not in men. Our findings provide insight into a simple and inexpensive method that could be used to identify MetS in initial health screening efforts in epidemiology and public health.

Association of type 2 diabetes with anthropometrics, bone mineral density, and body composition in a large-scale screening study of Korean adults.

OBJECTIVES: Type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) is a common, chronic disease that is closely associated with anthropometric indices related to obesity. However, no study published to date has simultaneously examined the associations of T2DM with anthropometrics, bone mineral density (BMD), and body composition variables. The present study aimed to evaluate the associations of T2DM with anthropometrics, BMD and body composition variables and to identify the best indicator of T2DM in Korean adults. METHODS: The data used in this study were obtained from the Korea National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey conducted from 2008 to 2011. A total of 7,835 participants aged from 40 to 90 years were included in this study. A binary logistic regression analysis was performed to examine the significance of differences between the groups with and without T2DM, and the areas under the receiver operating characteristic (AUCs) curves were calculated to compare the predictive power of all variables. RESULTS: In men, waist-to-height ratio (WHtR) displayed the strongest association with T2DM (adjusted odds ratio (OR) = 1.838 [1.513-2.233], adjusted p<0.001), and waist circumference (WC) and WHtR were the best indicators (WC: AUC = 0.662 [0.639-0.685], WHtR: AUC = 0.680 [0.658-0.703]) of T2DM among all the variables. In women, left leg (LL) and right leg (RL) fat displayed strong negative associations with T2DM (LL fat: adjusted OR = 0.367 [0.321-0.419], adjusted p<0.001, RL fat: adjusted OR = 0.375 [0.329-0.428], adjusted p<0.001), and WC and WHtR were excellent indicators (WC: AUC = 0.730 [0.709-0.750], WHtR: AUC = 0.747 [0.728-0.766]) of T2DM among all the variables. In particular, the WHtR in men and LL and RL fat in women exhibited the strongest associations with T2DM, and the predictive power of the WC and WHtR was stronger than BMD, fat, and muscle mass variables in both men and women. Additionally, the predictive power of the WC and WHtR was stronger in women than in men. DISCUSSION: Of the anthropometric indices, BMD, and body fat and muscle variables, the best indicators of T2DM were WC and WHtR in both Korean men and women. The results of the present investigation will provide basic information for clinical studies of patients with T2DM and evidence for the prevention and management of T2DM.

Identification of hypertriglyceridemia based on bone density, body fat mass, and anthropometry in a Korean population.

BACKGROUND: Hypertriglyceridemia is strongly associated with the risks of cardiovascular disease, coronary heart disease, and metabolic syndrome. The relationship between hypertriglyceridemia or high triglyceride levels and bone mineral density remains controversial. Furthermore, to date, no study has simultaneously examined the association among hypertriglyceridemia, bone area, bone mineral content, bone mineral density, body fat mass, and anthropometrics. The present study aimed to evaluate the association among hypertriglyceridemia, anthropometrics and various bone density and body fat composition variables to identify the best indicator of hypertriglyceridemia in a Korean population. METHODS: The data were obtained from the fifth Korea National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey. In total, 3918 subjects aged 20-80 years participated in this study. In the variable analysis of the waist circumference (WC), trunk fat mass (Trk-Ft), body mass index, etc., a binary logistic regression analysis was performed to examine the significance of the differences between the normal group and hypertriglyceridemia groups. RESULTS: In both men and women, the WC showed the strongest association with hypertriglyceridemia in the crude analysis (odds ratio (OR) = 1.738 [confidence interval = 1.529-1.976] and OR = 2.075 [1.797-2.397]), but the Trk-Ft was the most strongly associated with the disease after adjusting for age and body mass index (adjusted OR = 1.565 [1.262-1.941] and adjusted OR = 1.730 [1.291-2.319]). In particular, the Pelvis area (Plv-A) was the most significant among the bone variables in women (adjusted OR = 0.641 [0.515-0.796]). In the predictive power analysis, the best indicator of hypertriglyceridemia was WC in women (the area under the receiver operating characteristic curve (AUC) = 0.718 [0.685-0.751]) and Trk-Ft in men (AUC = 0.672 [0.643-0.702]). The WC was also the most predictive among the anthropometric variables in men (AUC = 0.670 [0.641-0.700]). The strength of the association and predictive power was stronger in women than in men. CONCLUSIONS: The WC in women and Trk-Ft in men exhibited the best predictive power for hypertriglyceridemia. Our findings support the use of basic information for the identification of hypertriglyceridemia or high triglyceride levels in initial health screening efforts.

Association of Cold-Heat Patterns with Tongue Features, Body Composition, Anthropometric Indices, and Blood Parameters in Tae-Eum Type.

INTRODUCTION: The purpose of this study was to elucidate the relationship between cold-heat patterns and body composition, anthropometric indices, blood parameters, and tongue features in Tae-Eum type subjects. We also sought to determine whether significant indicators could be used as risk factors for predicting cold-heat patterns in a clinic. METHODS: This prospective, case-control pilot study was conducted at a single center. The subjects were males and females aged 19 years or older who had been analyzed as the Tae-Eum type. After screening, subject allocation was performed. The body composition, 11 anthropometric indices, blood parameters, and tongue features of the subjects were measured by well-trained practitioners. An independent t-test was conducted to compare the cold- and heat-pattern groups. Binary logistic regression was performed to determine significant differences between the two groups after adjusting for age, sex, and systolic blood pressure, with a focus on identifying significant indicators. RESULTS: Eighty-nine participants were recruited, 39 of whom were excluded from the analysis. Ultimately, 20 cold-pattern and 30 heat-pattern subjects were included in the final analysis. We found that alanine aminotransferase and all anthropometric indices, except for neck and forehead circumference, were significant predictive factors in both groups according to the binary regression analysis. Additionally, the tongue body color in the cold-pattern group was significantly paler than that in the heat-pattern group. CONCLUSIONS: This study found that cold and heat patterns were significantly associated with body composition, anthropometric indices, blood parameters, and tongue features. We suggest that these factors could thus be used as objective indicators and predictors of cold-heat patterns. Our findings provide fundamental but also applicable data that will be useful for diagnosing and monitoring cold-heat patterns in Tae-Eum type patients.

Association of gastric and duodenal ulcers with anthropometry and nutrients: Korean National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (KNHANES II-IV) 2001-2009.

OBJECTIVES: The objective of this study was to examine the association of peptic ulcer disease (PUD), including gastric ulcer and duodenal ulcer, with obesity-related indices, nutrients, and blood parameters in Korean adults. METHODS: Data were obtained from the Second-Fourth Korean National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (KNHANES II-IV). Binary logistic regression was carried out to analyze the association between PUD and all variables in the crude analysis; in a subsequent analysis, adjustments were made for age, region, house type, number of snacks per day, and number of household members. RESULTS: PUD exhibited the highest association with age in both men and women among all variables used in this study. In men, only body mass index was associated with PUD in both the crude and adjusted analyses. PUD was associated with weight, height, and fat in the crude analysis, but these associations disappeared after adjustment for confounders. Vitamin B2, hemoglobin, and glucose were related to PUD, but these associations became nonsignificant in the adjusted analysis. Water, vitamin C, and potassium were not associated with PUD in the crude analysis but were associated with PUD after adjustment for confounders. In women, systolic blood pressure and height were associated with PUD. PUD was also related to waist circumference, the waist-to-height ratio, fat, and cholesterol, but these associations became nonsignificant after adjustment for confounders. Vitamin C, protein, niacin, sodium, energy, vitamin B2, vitamin B1, and aspartate aminotransferases were associated with PUD in only the crude analysis. PUD was not associated with diastolic blood pressure, water, vitamin A, or glucose, but these factors were associated with the disease in the adjusted analysis. CONCLUSION: Older age was a risk factor for PUD in Korean adults, and the association of PUD with most nutrients and anthropometric indices may differ according to gender.

A comparison of trunk circumference and width indices for hypertension and type 2 diabetes in a large-scale screening: a retrospective cross-sectional study.

Anthropometric indices determine important risk factors for many chronic diseases. However, to date, no study has simultaneously analyzed the capabilities of trunk circumference and width indices to identify hypertension and type 2 diabetes in a large-scale screening study. The objectives of this study were to examine the associations of hypertension and - diabetes with circumference and width indices measured at the five identical positions (axillary, chest, rib, waist, and pelvic) and to compare the capabilities of circumference and width indices to identify the two diseases. Data were obtained from the Korean Health and Genome Epidemiology Study database. The associations and abilities of the circumference indices to identify diabetes were greater than those for hypertension. Overall, trunk circumference indices displayed stronger associations with and greater abilities to identify hypertension and diabetes than did trunk width indices at the five positions. In the comparative analysis between index pairs of circumference and width in patients with diabetes, significant differences were shown at all five positions and in the adjusted analysis of axillary, chest, rib, and pelvic positions. Therefore, width indices should not be used as an alternative indicator of type 2 diabetes in either men or women, except when measured at the waist.

Prediction of cold and heat patterns using anthropometric measures based on machine learning.

OBJECTIVE: To examine the association of body shape with cold and heat patterns, to determine which anthropometric measure is the best indicator for discriminating between the two patterns, and to investigate whether using a combination of measures can improve the predictive power to diagnose these patterns. METHODS: Based on a total of 4,859 subjects (3,000 women and 1,859 men), statistical analyses using binary logistic regression were performed to assess the significance of the difference and the predictive power of each anthropometric measure, and binary logistic regression and Naive Bayes with the variable selection technique were used to assess the improvement in the predictive power of the patterns using the combined measures. RESULTS: In women, the strongest indicators for determining the cold and heat patterns among anthropometric measures were body mass index (BMI) and rib circumference; in men, the best indicator was BMI. In experiments using a combination of measures, the values of the area under the receiver operating characteristic curve in women were 0.776 by Naive Bayes and 0.772 by logistic regression, and the values in men were 0.788 by Naive Bayes and 0.779 by logistic regression. CONCLUSIONS: Individuals with a higher BMI have a tendency toward a heat pattern in both women and men. The use of a combination of anthropometric measures can slightly improve the diagnostic accuracy. Our findings can provide fundamental information for the diagnosis of cold and heat patterns based on body shape for personalized medicine.

Association of peptic ulcer disease with obesity, nutritional components, and blood parameters in the Korean population.

OBJECTIVES: Peptic ulcer disease (PUD) is a common disorder, but whether an association exists between PUD and anthropometric indicators remains controversial. Furthermore, no studies on the association of PUD with anthropometric indices, blood parameters, and nutritional components have been reported. The aim of this study was to assess associations of anthropometrics, blood parameters, nutritional components, and lifestyle factors with PUD in the Korean population. METHODS: Data were collected from a nationally representative sample of the South Korean population using the Korea National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey. Logistic regression was used to examine associations of anthropometrics, blood parameters and nutritional components among patients with PUD. RESULTS: Age was the factor most strongly associated with PUD in women (p = <0.0001, odds ratio (OR) = 0.770 [0.683-0.869]) and men (p = <0.0001, OR = 0.715 [0.616-0.831]). In both crude and adjusted analyses, PUD was highly associated with weight (adjusted p = 0.0008, adjusted OR = 1.251 [95%CI: 1.098-1.426]), hip circumference (adjusted p = 0.005, adjusted OR = 1.198 [1.056-1.360]), and body mass index (adjusted p = 0.0001, adjusted OR = 1.303 [1.139-1.490]) in women and hip circumference (adjusted p = 0.0199, adjusted OR = 1.217 [1.031-1.435]) in men. PUD was significantly associated with intake of fiber (adjusted p = 0.0386, adjusted OR = 1.157 [1.008-1.328], vitamin B2 (adjusted p = 0.0477, adjusted OR = 1.155 [1.001-1.333]), sodium (adjusted p = 0.0154, adjusted OR = 1.191 [1.034-1.372]), calcium (adjusted p = 0.0079, adjusted OR = 1.243 [1.059-1.459]), and ash (adjusted p = 0.0468, adjusted OR = 1.152 [1.002-1.325] in women but not in men. None of the assessed blood parameters were associated with PUD in women, and only triglyceride level was associated with PUD in men (adjusted p = 0.0169, adjusted OR = 1.227 [1.037-1.451]). DISCUSSION: We found that obesity was associated with PUD in the Korean population; additionally, the association between nutritional components and PUD was greater in women than in men.

Identification of Hemoglobin Levels Based on Anthropometric Indices in Elderly Koreans.

OBJECTIVES: Anemia is independently and strongly associated with an increased risk of mortality in older people and is also strongly associated with obesity. The objectives of the present study were to examine the associations between the hemoglobin level and various anthropometric indices, to predict low and normal hemoglobin levels using combined anthropometric indices, and to assess differences in the hemoglobin level and anthropometric indices between Korean men and women. METHODS: A total of 7,156 individuals ranging in age from 53-90 years participated in this retrospective cross-sectional study. Binary logistic regression (LR) and naïve Bayes (NB) models were used to identify significant differences in the anthropometric indices between subjects with low and normal hemoglobin levels and to assess the predictive power of these indices for the hemoglobin level. RESULTS: Among all of the variables, age displayed the strongest association with the hemoglobin level in both men (p < 0.0001, odds ratio [OR] = 0.487, area under the receiver operating characteristic curve based on the LR [LR-AUC] = 0.702, NB-AUC = 0.701) and women (p < 0.0001, OR = 0.636, LR-AUC = 0.625, NB-AUC = 0.624). Among the anthropometric indices, weight and body mass index (BMI) were the best predictors of the hemoglobin level. The predictive powers of all of the variables were higher in men than in women. The AUC values for the NB-Wrapper and LR-Wrapper predictive models generated using combined anthropometric indices were 0.734 and 0.723, respectively, for men and 0.649 and 0.652, respectively, for women. The use of combined anthropometric indices may improve the predictive power for the hemoglobin level. DISCUSSION: Among the various anthropometric indices, with the exception of age, we did not identify any indices that were better predictors than weight and BMI for low and normal hemoglobin levels. In addition, none of the ratios between pairs of indices were good indicators of the hemoglobin level. Finally, the Korean men tended to have higher associations between the anthropometric indices and anemia than the women.