Eating behavior and metabolic syndrome over time

Area of Science:

• Nutritional Science
• Metabolic Health
• Behavioral Medicine

Background:

• Metabolic syndrome (MetS) is a cluster of conditions increasing the risk of heart disease, stroke, and type 2 diabetes.
• Eating behaviors (EB) are recognized as modifiable factors influencing metabolic health.
• Understanding the longitudinal relationship between specific EB and MetS risk is crucial for public health strategies.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate the long-term associations between various eating behaviors (EB) and the risk of developing metabolic syndrome (MetS).

Main Methods:

• A cohort study of 1876 Korean adults (704 men, 1172 women) from the Korean Healthy Twin study.
• Eating behaviors were assessed using the Dutch Eating Behavior Questionnaire at baseline and follow-up.
• Generalized estimating equation models analyzed the association between EB (baseline and changes) and MetS components over a mean follow-up of 3.13 years.

Main Results:

• In men, higher baseline restrained eating and external eating, as well as an increase in external eating, were associated with concurrent and persistent MetS.
• In women, higher baseline restrained eating was linked to concurrent MetS, while external eating showed an inverse association with persistent MetS.
• Emotional eating, both at baseline and as a change over time, was positively associated with concurrent, incident, and persistent MetS in women.

Conclusions:

• Specific eating behaviors, including restrained, external, and emotional eating, are longitudinally associated with an increased risk of metabolic syndrome.
• The associations between eating behaviors and MetS risk differ between men and women.
• These findings suggest that targeting specific eating patterns may be beneficial in preventing and managing metabolic syndrome.