Triglyceride-glucose index demonstrates reasonable performance as a screening tool but exhibits limited diagnostic utility for insulin resistance: Data from the ELSA-Brasil cohort.

Insulin resistance (IR) is a key risk factor for chronic metabolic diseases, but its laboratory diagnosis is still costly; thus, the triglyceride-glucose (TyG) index has been proposed as a surrogate method. Our aim was to provide a detailed analysis of cutoffs and test the hypothesis that the TyG index would present reasonable performance parameters for IR screening. This is a cross-sectional study with baseline data from 12,367 eligible participants of both sexes (aged 35-74 years) from the Brazilian Longitudinal Study of Adult Health. TyG correlation and agreement with the Homeostasis Model Assessment for Insulin Resistance were analyzed. Positive and negative predictive values (PV+, PV-) and likelihood ratio (LR+, LR-) were calculated. A moderate positive correlation between TyG and Homeostasis Model Assessment for Insulin Resistance was observed (Pearson r = 0.419). The area under the receiver operating characteristic curve of TyG for IR diagnosis was 0.742 and the optimal cutoff was 4.665, reaching a kappa agreement value of 0.354. For this cutoff, a PV+ of 59.3% and PV- of 76.0%, as well as an LR+ of 2.07 and LR- of 0.45 were obtained. Alternatively, because high sensitivity is desired for screening tests, selecting a lower cutoff, such as 4.505, increases the PV- to 82.1%, despite decreasing the PV+ to 50.8%. We conclude that TyG has important performance limitations for detecting IR, but that it may still be reasonably useful to help screening for IR in adults because it can be calculated from low-cost routine blood tests.

Examining the Usage Patterns of Non-Nutritive Sweeteners among Non-Diabetic Individuals: Insights from the Longitudinal Study of Adult Health (ELSA-Brasil).

BACKGROUND: Although non-nutritive sweeteners (NNSs) were formulated primarily for sugar-restricted diets, nowadays, their consumption has become widespread among the general population. Thus, the purpose of this study was to estimate the prevalence of the regular use of NNSs and their associated factors among non-diabetic individuals from the baseline of the Longitudinal Study of Adult Health (ELSA-Brasil). METHODS: In total, 9226 individuals were analysed, and the regular consumption of NNSs was defined as follows: NSSs are used at least once a day. Associations between exposure and outcomes were analysed using chi-square and Student's t-tests. Significant variables were inserted into a binary logistic regression model to determine the adjusted association measures (significance level of 5%). RESULTS: The prevalence of regular NNS consumption was 25.7%. Regular NNS consumption increased with age, categories of BMI, income, and schooling. The odds of regularly consuming NNSs were 1.9-times higher among women, 6.1-times higher among obese individuals, and 1.8-times higher among those with higher schooling and income. CONCLUSIONS: Specific groups seem to present a larger association relative to the use of NNS. Based on the significant overall prevalence of the regular use of NNSs, a discussion regarding country-wide policies related to their intake is needed to address recent WHO directions concerning this additive.

Indicadores de obesidade e resistência à insulina: uma revisão sistemática / Obesity indicators and insulin resistance: a systematic review

O objetivo deste estudo foi verificar os indicadores de obesidade associados à resistência à insulina, através de uma revisão sistemática. Dois revisores independentes realizaram uma busca nas bases de dados Medline, Pubmed, LILACS, IBECS-ES e MedCarib até abril de 2019, incluindo estudos caso-controle, coorte ou delineamento transversal, em adultos. A qualidade dos artigos foi avaliada por meio do Newcastle-Ottawa Scale. Foram adotadas as normas do PRISMA para a condução da revisão, com protocolo registrado no PROSPERO. Foram incluídos na revisão 12 artigos. Associação positiva entre indicador de obesidade e HOMA-IR foi observada em todos os estudos. O indicador de obesidade que mais esteve positivamente associado ao HOMA-IR foi o IMC, seguido da circunferência da cintura. Os indicadores de obesidade estão associados ao HOMA-IR podendo ser uma ferramenta útil no rastreio da resistência à insulina.

The aim of this study was to verify the obesity indicators associated with insulin resistance by a systematic review. Two independent reviewers performed a search on Medline, Pubmed, LILACS, IBECS-ES and MedCarib databases up to April 2019, which included case-control, cohort or cross-sectional studies in adults. Articles' quality was assessed by Newcastle-Ottawa Scale. PRISMA guideline for conducting the review were adopted, with protocol registered at PROSPERO. Twelve articles were included in the review. All studies reported a positive association between obesity indicators and HOMA-IR. Obesity indicator most positively associated with HOMA-IR was BMI, followed by waist circumference. Obesity indicators are associated with HOMA-IR and may be a useful tool for screening insulin resistance.