Association of dietary cholesterol and dyslipidemia in Chinese health examinees

Standard and New Echocardio Techniques, Such as Global Longitudinal Strain, to Monitor the Impact of Diets on Cardiovascular Diseases and Heart Function

"The Seven Countries Study", published in 1984, was the first study to find a correlation between diet and mortality related to cardiovascular diseases (CVDs). Since then, many investigations have addressed the relationship between type of diet, or specific nutrients, and CVDs. Based on these findings, some traditional dietary models, such as the Mediterranean or Nordic diet, are recommended to prevent CVDs. Meanwhile, new diets have been proposed for optimal nutrition therapy, for example, the Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension (DASH) and the Mediterranean-DASH Intervention Diet for Neurodegenerative Delay (MIND). The main outcomes evaluated after implementing these dietary models are as follows: CVD-related death; the development of specific CVDs, such as myocardial infarction and hypertension; or biochemical parameters related to CVDs, i.e., non-HDL cholesterol, C-reactive protein (CPR) and homocysteine. However, the early impact of diet on heart functionality is less evaluated. Recently, the echographic measurement of left ventricle (LV) deformation by global longitudinal strain (GLS) has been introduced as a novel marker of clinical and subclinical cardiac dysfunction. This technology allows a subclinical evaluation of heart functionality since, differently from the traditional evaluation of left ventricle ejection fraction (LVEF), it is capable of detecting early myocardial dysfunction. In this review, we analyzed the available studies that correlate dietetic regimens to cardiovascular diseases, focusing on the relevance of LV strain to detect subclinical myocardial alteration related to diet. Evidence is presented that DASH and MIND can have a positive impact on heart functionality and that myocardial strain is useful for early detection of diet-related changes in cardiac function.

Association between cooking patterns and the prevalence of hyperlipidemia in Eastern China

BACKGROUND

Hyperlipidemia is a major risk factor for many diseases. Previous studies have shown that diet is closely associated with hyperlipidemia. However, the relationship between cooking methods and hyperlipidemia remains unclear. The objective of this study was to identify the major cooking patterns existing in the Eastern Chinese population and evaluate their association with the prevalence of hyperlipidemia.

METHODS

We interviewed 4,710 residents in Eastern China regarding the consumption frequency of each cooking method when they prepare food at home or when eating out and regarding the prevalence of hyperlipidemia. Factor analysis, Chi-square tests, analysis of variance, and binary logistic regression analysis were used to identify the cooking patterns and analyze the characteristics of participants' categories of cooking patterns and the relationship between different cooking patterns and prevalence of hyperlipidemia.

RESULTS

Three major cooking patterns were identified: Traditional Chinese, Bland (little or no oil is used to process the food), and High-temperature cooking patterns. After controlling for potential confounders, participants in the highest quartile of the Bland cooking pattern had lower odds of hyperlipidemia than those in the lowest quartile. Nevertheless, no significant associations were observed between the Traditional Chinese and High-temperature cooking patterns and the prevalence of hyperlipidemia.

CONCLUSIONS

This study confirms the association between cooking patterns and the prevalence of hyperlipidemia and indicates that the Bland cooking pattern is associated with a reduced prevalence of hyperlipidemia.

Diet Quality and Mortality among Chinese Adults: Findings from the China Health and Nutrition Survey

The association between diet quality and all-cause mortality in Chinese population is unclear. We aimed to study the associations of three a priori diet quality indices-including the Diet Quality Index-International (DQI-I), Chinese Healthy Eating Index (CHEI), and energy-adjusted Dietary Inflammatory Index (E-DII)-and their included components with all-cause mortality. We used baseline data from the 2004, 2006, 2009, and 2011 waves of the China Health and Nutrition Survey (CHNS). We used a multivariable-adjusted Cox model to examine the associations between DQI-I, CHEI, and E-DII with all-cause mortality. During a mean of 7 years of follow-up, a total of 461 deaths occurred among 12,914 participants. For DQI-I, there were significant inverse associations with mortality for the variety score (HRQ4 vs. Q1 = 0.69, 95%CI = 0.52-0.92) and overall balance score (HR>0 vs. 0 = 0.81, 95%CI = 0.66-0.91). The adequacy score of CHEI was associated with 40% less risk of all-cause mortality (HRQ4 vs. Q1 = 0.60, 95%CI = 0.43-0.84). E-DII was not associated with mortality. An estimated 20.1%, 13.9%, and 31.3% of total mortality would be averted if the DQI-I variety score, DQI-I overall balance score, and CHEI adequacy score improved from the bottom to the top quartile, respectively. Improving diet quality, especially improving diet variety and adequacy, and having a more balanced diet may reduce all-cause mortality in Chinese adults.

Longitudinal Association between Physical Activity, Blood Lipids, and Risk of Dyslipidemia among Chinese Adults: Findings from the China Health and Nutrition Surveys in 2009 and 2015

Physical activity is needed in today’s highly sedentary society. Research into Chinese trends with respect to the longitudinal association between changes in physical activity (PA) and dyslipidemia (DL) is limited. The present study assessed PA and PA-related changes associated with the level of serum lipids, and the risk of dyslipidemia stratified by gender, via a population-based longitudinal observational study among adults (>18 years old) residing in nine provinces in China. Data of 3380 adult participants, gleaned from two surveys in 2009 and 2015 used by the China Health and Nutrition Survey (CHNS), were analyzed. Three-level random intercept growth models were used to calculate the associations between total physical activity (TPA), the four activity subtypes, and changes in the level of blood lipids. Three-level logistic regression models were utilized to assess the association between TPA and the risk of DL. The highest level of TPA was observed to correlate with the lowest prevalence of DL. Compared with the lowest level of TPA, the highest level of TPA increases the concentration of HDL-C (β = 0.050, 95% CI = 0.005, 0.096) in males, and also reduces the risk in males of having low HDL-C by 31% (OR = 0.69, 95% CI = 0.52, 0.91). Occupational PA was positively associated with higher HDL-C levels in both genders (males: β = 0.004, 95% CI = 0.002, 0.007; females: β = 0.002, 95% CI = 0.000, 0.004), and leisure-time physical activity (LTPA) was negatively associated with TG levels in males. Increasing TPA benefited HDL-C levels in males, irrespective of the level of basic TPA of individuals. Physical activity (especially occupational PA) was superior in positively influencing HDL-C in males, but not in females. Leisure-time physical activity needs to be increased substantially in order to increase TPA to levels that would be beneficial to blood lipid levels and DL, irrespective of baseline TPA levels.

Radix Pueraria Flavonoids Assisted Green Synthesis of Reduced Gold Nanoparticles: Application for Electrochemical Nonenzymatic Detection of Cholesterol in Food Samples

Using radix pueraria flavonoids (RPFs) as a reducing and stabilizing agent, we report a simple, cost-effective, and ecologically friendly green synthesis technique for gold nanoparticles (AuNPs) in the present study. Ultraviolet-visible (UV) spectroscopy, transmission electron microscopy (TEM), Fourier transform infrared (FTIR), and X-ray diffraction (XRD) investigations were used to characterize the AuNPs. The results demonstrated that the produced AuNPs were nearly spherical and that their particle sizes had a mean diameter of 4.85 ± 0.75 nm. The "Green" AuNPs, exhibiting remarkable peroxidase-like activity and Michaelis-Menten kinetics with high affinity for H₂O₂ and 3,3',5,5'-tetramethylbenzidine (TMB), were effectively applied to the fabrication of a sensitive nonenzymatic enhanced electrochemical sensor for the detection of cholesterol (Cho). Under optimum circumstances, it was possible to establish two linear ranges of 1-100 and 250-5000 μmol/L with a detection limit of 0.259 μmol/L (signal/noise ratio (S/N) = 3). The suggested sensor was utilized with satisfactory findings to determine the amount of Cho in food samples.

Is There a Correlation between Dietary and Blood Cholesterol? Evidence from Epidemiological Data and Clinical Interventions

Dietary cholesterol has been a topic of debate since the 1960s when the first dietary guidelines that limited cholesterol intake to no more than 300 mg/day were set. These recommendations were followed for several years, and it was not until the late 1990s when they were finally challenged by the newer information derived from epidemiological studies and meta-analysis, which confirmed the lack of correlation between dietary and blood cholesterol. Further, dietary interventions in which challenges of cholesterol intake were evaluated in diverse populations not only confirmed these findings but also reported beneficial effects on plasma lipoprotein subfractions and size as well as increases in HDL cholesterol and in the functionality of HDL. In this review, we evaluate the evidence from recent epidemiological analysis and meta-analysis as well as clinical trials to have a better understanding of the lack of correlation between dietary and blood cholesterol.