Overweight and obesity and associated factors in adults in a poor urban area of Northeastern Brazil

An industrialized diet as a determinant of methylation in the 1F region of the NR3C1 gene promoter

Background

Dietary composition can modify gene expression, favoring the development of chronic diseases via epigenetic mechanisms.

Objective

Our study aimed to investigate the relationship between dietary patterns and NR3C1 gene methylation in users of the Brazilian Public Unified Health System (SUS).

Methods

We recruited 250 adult volunteers and evaluated their socioeconomic status, psychosocial characteristics, lifestyle, and anthropometrics. Peripheral blood was collected and evaluated for cortisol levels, glycemia, lipid profile, and insulin resistance; methylation of CpGs 40-47 of the 1F region of the NR3C1 gene was also measured. Factors associated with degree of methylation were evaluated using generalized linear models (p < 0.05). Lifestyle variables and health variables were included as confounding factors.

Results

The findings of our cross-sectional study indicated an association between NR3C1 DNA methylation and intake of processed foods. We also observed relevant associations of average NR3C1 DNA across the segment analyzed, methylation in component 1 (40-43), and methylation in component 2 (44-47) with a pattern of consumption of industrialized products in relation to BMI, serum cortisol levels, and lipid profile. These results may indicate a relationship between methylation and metabolic changes related to the stress response.

Conclusion

These findings suggest an association of methylation and metabolic alterations with stress response. In addition, the present study highlights the significant role of diet quality as a stress-inducing factor that influences NR3C1 methylation. This relationship is further linked to changes in psychosocial factors, lifestyle choices, and cardiometabolic variables, including glucose levels, insulin resistance, and hyperlipidemia.

Food and Nutrition Surveillance System (SISVAN) coverage, nutritional status of older adults and its relationship with social inequalities in Brazil, 2008-2019: an ecological time-series study

OBJECTIVE

to analyze the temporal trend of Food and Nutrition Surveillance System (Sistema de Vigilância Alimentar e Nutricional - SISVAN) coverage and the nutritional status of older adults, and its correlation with indicators of social inequality in Brazil between 2008-2019.

METHODS

this was an ecological study using records from SISVAN, related to the population aged 60 years and older; the temporal trend of coverage and the correlation between indicators of social inequality and increment rate of nutritional status were analyzed; slope index of inequality and concentration index were used to measure absolute and relative inequalities.

RESULTS

11,587,933 records were identified; national coverage increased from 0.1% (2008) to 2.9% (2019), with a statistically significant upward trend; a moderate inverse correlation with an annual increment rate of overweight between human development index and gross domestic product per capita, was found.

CONCLUSION

there was an increasing trend in SISVAN coverage; the increase in overweight was associated with social inequality.

Nutritional and Socioeconomic Determinants of Overweight and Obesity in the French Amazon: The Health Barometer Study

OBJECTIVES

French Guiana is a multicultural overseas territory where obesity is a major public health problem. This study aimed to highlight the nutritional and socioeconomic determinants of overweight and obesity in different populations in French Guiana.

METHODS

A two-stage random sample of 1390 individuals aged 15 to 75 years was surveyed by telephone, and the participants were initially screened for diabetes. Logistic regression was fitted on the sample to adjust for potential confounding factors.

RESULTS

Overweight and obesity were found in 54.7% of the respondents, a higher proportion than in mainland France. There was a significant body image discrepancy in our population, with a higher risk of obesity among single women, often immigrants from the non-French Caribbean and South America, unemployed or low education.

CONCLUSIONS

The main factors associated with obesity were being a precariousness immigrant; there was often a mismatch between body image and overweight/obesity, which is a major obstacle to the improvement of dietary behaviors and lifestyle. This information provides operational clues as to where to act and the necessary adaptations to attempt to modify behaviors in a culturally-adapted manner.