Associations between Dietary Selenium Intake and Risk of Incident Arthritis: Based on UK Biobank WebQ Assessment (2009-2012).

Although previous studies investigated the association between dietary selenium (Se) intake and arthritis risk, with inconsistent results. Our study aims to assess whether Se intake can delay arthritis onset through a large-scale, long-term population-based cohort. 133,230 - 153,247 arthritis-free participants from the UK Biobank were included. Arthritis was defined using ICD-10 codes. Dietary Se intake was evaluated through 24-hour dietary recall questionnaires. Association between Se intake and incident arthritis was evaluated using accelerated failure time model. Additionally, we conducted subgroup analysis stratified by age, sex, body mass index (BMI) and genetic risk. Over a median follow-up period of 8.07 years, 1,175 RA cases and 13,413 OA patients were identified. Dietary Se can delay RA onset, with the following time ratios (TR) (Q2 VS Q1: TR (95% CI) = 1.25 (1.12, 1.40); Q3 VS Q1: TR (95% CI) = 1.26 (1.13, 1.41); Q4 VS Q1: TR (95% CI) = 1.25 (1.12, 1.40); P for trend < 0.001)). Similarly, Se intake can delay OA onset (Q3 VS Q1: TR (95% CI) = 1.06 (1.02, 1.10), P = 0.001)). Subgroup analyses revealed that Se intake delayed RA onset in younger individuals and females, and postponed OA onset in individuals with high BMI and high genetic risk. Our study suggests that Se intake may protect against RA and OA. These findings provide new insights for primary prevention strategies and dietary interventions aimed at reducing arthritis risk.