Public Health Nutr. 2026 Apr 1:1-26. doi: 10.1017/S1368980026102316. Online ahead of print.
ABSTRACT
OBJECTIVE: To examine the association between dietary patterns and MetS in western China, which has not been previously reported.
DESIGN: A population based cross-sectional study design. Dietary intake was assessed using a semi-quantitative food frequency questionnaire. Principal component analysis identified dietary patterns, and multivariate logistic regression evaluated their associations with MetS.
SETTING: Population-based Cohort Study of Chronic Diseases in Xinjiang (PCCDX), conducted in 2022.
PARTICIPANTS: A total of 3 208 individuals from PCCDX (mean age: 53.1 ± 10.8 years; 49.1% male).
RESULTS: MetS was diagnosed in 1 762 participants (54.9%). Four distinct dietary patterns were identified, with the refined grain-animal products dietary pattern being the dominant one. After adjusting for general demographic and lifestyle factors, a higher score in the refined grain-animal product pattern was associated with an increased risk of MetS. The odds ratios for the second, third, and fourth quartiles of the dietary score were 1.07 (95% CI: 0.860∼1.322), 1.14 (0.923∼1.413), and 1.48 (1.189∼1.853), with a statistically significant trend (P = 0.003). Higher dietary scores in this pattern were also associated with increased risks of elevated waist circumference, high triglycerides, and low high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-C) (P < 0.05). Mediation analysis showed that visceral fat percentage partially mediated the association between the refined grain-animal product dietary pattern and low HDL-C, accounting for 17.2% of the total effect (indirect effect = 0.005, P = 0.006). The other three dietary patterns showed no significant associations with MetS or its components.
CONCLUSIONS: This study highlights the high prevalence of MetS in western China and links a refined grains-animal products diet to poorer metabolic health, emphasizing the need for region-specific dietary strategies.
PMID:41919321 | DOI:10.1017/S1368980026102316
