Adolescent wine consumption is inversely associated with long-term weight gain: results from follow-up of 20 or 22 years

The Effect of Human Development Index on Obesity Prevalence at the Global Level: A Spatial Analysis

Background

Obesity is one of the major public health concerns, and its prevalence is increasing worldwide. This study aimed to investigate the effect of human development index on the prevalence of obesity across 152 countries.

Methods

Country-level data on obesity prevalence and its influencing variables related to 152 countries were obtained during 2000-2019 from several sources. A Spatial Bayesian Hierarchical model was employed in this research, and the analyses were performed using R statistical software (version 3.6.1).

Results

We found a positive relation between HDI and obesity prevalence, in such a way if low HDI countries advance to high HDI countries, the obesity rate is expected to increase significantly by 7.45%. Moreover, the association between obesity prevalence and the percentage of people aged 40-59 (β=0.07), urbanization rate (β=0.11), percentage of internet users (β=0.01), percentage of alcohol users (β=0.16), milk consumption per capita (β=0.15) and Percentage of depression (β=0.58) was significantly positive. Conversely, per capita consumption of fruits and vegetables (β=-0.15), and smoking rate (β=-0.02) was negatively associated with obesity prevalence.

Conclusion

The prevalence of obesity is growing across all countries, especially in the countries with high and very high HDI. Therefore, policymakers must also pay attention to the negative effects of development when trying to improve the welfare of society.

Alcohol Consumption and Adiposity: A Longitudinal Analysis of 45,399 UK Biobank Participants

The evidence on the association between alcohol consumption and adiposity is inconsistent and fragmented. We investigated the longitudinal association between alcohol consumption pattern and four different adiposity markers with repeated measures of adiposity and obesity incidence. We categorized current drinkers based on the sex-specific quartiles of their weekly alcohol consumption and the UK alcohol drinking guidelines. We used multivariable adjusted generalised linear models. With the exception of a direct association between alcohol volume and body fat percentage (BF%) in women (B = 0.42%; 95%CI: 0.04, 0.80% for women in the top quartile), we found no associations between alcohol consumption and adiposity markers for either sex. Red wine and champagne/white wine consumption were inversely associated with waist circumference (WC) for both sexes (B = -0.58 cm, 95%CI: -0.77, -0.38 cm and B= -0.49 cm, 95%CI: -0.68, -0.29 cm, respectively, for women; B = -0.28 cm, 95%CI: -0.47, -0.08 cm and B = -0.23 cm, 95%CI: -0.42, -0.04 cm, respectively, for men). Female and male spirit drinkers had higher WC than non-spirit drinkers. Alcohol consumption was associated with a lower risk of obesity incidence in women (OR:0.60, 95%CI:0.45, 0.80 for the 2nd quartile, OR:0.53, 95%CI: 0.40, 0.70 for the 3rd quartile and OR:0.61, 95%CI:0.46, 0.80 for the 4th quartile). We found limited evidence of longitudinal associations between alcohol intake and adiposity. The few statistically significant associations we observed are unlikely to be of clinical importance.

The Profiling of Diet and Physical Activity in Reproductive Age Women and Their Association with Body Mass Index

Pre-pregnancy, pregnancy and postpartum are critical life stages associated with higher weight gain and obesity risk. Among these women, the sociodemographic groups at highest risk for suboptimal lifestyle behaviours and core lifestyle components associated with excess adiposity are unclear. This study sought to identify subgroups of women meeting diet/physical activity (PA) recommendations in relation to sociodemographics and assess diet/PA components associated with body mass index (BMI) across these life stages. Cross-sectional data (Australian National Nutrition and Physical Activity Survey 2011–2012) were analysed for pre-pregnancy, pregnant and postpartum women. The majority (63–95%) of women did not meet dietary or PA recommendations at all life stages. Core and discretionary food intake differed by sociodemographic factors. In pre-pregnant women, BMI was inversely associated with higher whole grain intake (β = −1.58, 95% CI −2.96, −0.21; p = 0.025) and energy from alcohol (β = −0.08, −0.14, −0.005; p = 0.035). In postpartum women, BMI was inversely associated with increased fibre (β = −0.06, 95% CI −0.11, −0.004; p = 0.034) and PA (β = −0.002, 95% CI −0.004, −0.001; p = 0.013). This highlights the need for targeting whole grains, fibre and PA to prevent obesity across life stages, addressing those most socioeconomically disadvantaged.