Dietary total antioxidant capacity and its dietary sources in association with non-alcoholic fatty liver disease: a...

Total antioxidant capacity (TAC) indicates the quality of individuals' diet. It has been proposed as a valuable measure for evaluating the potential protective effects of dietary antioxidants. The aim of this study is to assess the relationship between the dietary TAC and odds of non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) in Yazd, Iran.

This case-control study included 115 patients diagnosed with non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) and 102 age- and sex-matched controls without NAFLD, all recruited from the same medical clinic. After 12 h of fasting, serum concentration of liver enzymes, fasting blood glucose and lipid profile of case and control groups were measured. To evaluate the participants' dietary intake during the past year a semi-quantitative Food Frequency Questionnaire which was validated for Iranian population, were used.

There was no significant association between TAC and the risk of NAFLD in the whole population. However, risk of NAFLD in men those in top tertile of vegetable oil TAC were higher than men in the lowest tertile in crude model (OR = 3.81, CI: 1.19-12.2; P = 0.01). This relationship was attenuated and no longer statistically significant after adjusting for confounding variables.

In the current study, no significant association was observed between NAFLD and dietary TAC, although in men who had a higher intake of vegetable oil TAC, a higher risk of NAFLD was observed. Further well-designed prospective studies are warranted to clarify these relationships.