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Published on: January 12, 2020
Racial and ethnic differences in diet quality and food insecurity among adults with fatty liver and significant
Ani Kardashian1, Jennifer L Dodge1,2, Norah A Terrault1
1Division of Gastrointestinal and Liver Diseases, University of Southern California, Los Angeles, California, USA.
Background:
Food insecurity affects diet quality (DQ) and is associated with non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD). While racial and ethnic disparities in NAFLD exist, the relationship between food insecurity and DQ by race and ethnicity is unknown.
Aim:
To examine the relationship between food insecurity and DQ in adults with NAFLD and significant fibrosis by race and ethnicity in a nationally representative cohort METHODS: We performed a cross-sectional analysis of U.S. adults (≥20 years) in the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey 2017-2018 with vibration-controlled transient elastography (VCTE), DQ, and food security (FS) measurements. NAFLD and significant fibrosis were defined using validated VCTE cut-offs. We assessed total and component DQ by the healthy eating index (HEI)-2015, with poor scores defined as <25th percentile. We used multivariable linear and logistic regression to examine associations of FS and race/ethnicity with DQ.
Results:
Of 1351 adults with NAFLD (17% food insecure; 248 with fibrosis), mean (standard error [SE]) DQ score was 49 (1) and 47(1.2) for food secure and insecure groups, respectively. Mean (SE) DQ was lowest for White (47[1.1]), followed by Black (49[0.9]), Hispanic (50[1.2]) and Asian persons (56[2.1]). In multivariable models, there was an inverse relationship between FS and DQ, although this did not reach statistical significance (estimated difference [coef]:-1.8 mean HEI score, 95% CI: -4.3-0.7; p = 0.14). Adjusted mean DQ scores were higher for Black (coef:+3.0, 95% CI:0.5-5.5; p = 0.02), Asian (coef:+7.4, 95% CI:3.4-11.5; p = 0.001) and Hispanic (coef: +4.3, 95% CI: 0.6-7.9; p = 0.03) compared to White persons. Greatest differences in DQ components by food security status were seen in White persons.
Conclusion:
Among adults with NAFLD, White persons had poorer DQ than other races/ethnicities. The influence of food insecurity on DQ may be potentiated in this group. Exploration of the sociocultural factors influencing DQ is needed to mitigate NAFLD disparities.
