Adherence to diabetes risk reduction diet is associated with metabolic health status in adolescents with overweight or obesity.

BACKGROUND

Insufficient evidence exists regarding the relationship between diabetes risk reduction diet (DRRD) and metabolic health status in adolescents. The current study aimed to investigate the relationship between DRRD and metabolic health status in Iranian adolescents with overweight/obesity.

METHODS

In this cross-sectional study, a multistage cluster random sampling method was used to select 203 overweight/obese adolescents. Dietary intakes were evaluated using a validated 147-item food frequency questionnaire. The following parameters were measured: blood pressure, anthropometric indices, fasting glucose, insulin, and lipid profiles. Participants were classified to metabolically healthy overweight/obese (MHO) or metabolically unhealthy overweight/obese (MUO), based on 2 methods: International Diabetes Federation (IDF) criteria and a combination of IDF and Homeostasis Model Assessment Insulin Resistance (HOMA-IR).

RESULTS

Based on IDF criteria, highest vs. lowest adherence to DRRD was associated with a lower odds of having an MUO phenotype in both crude (OR = 0.05; 95%CI: 0.02-0.12) and fully adjusted model (OR = 0.06; 95%CI: 0.02-0.20). Based on IDF/HOMA-IR criteria, similar findings were obtained. This relationship was significant in both genders and was especially significant among adolescents with obesity. In both crude and fully adjusted model, adherence to DRRD was significantly lower the likelihood of having high fasting blood glucose, triglycerides, and HOMA-IR.

CONCLUSION

Adolescents who adhered more strictly to DRRD were less likely to be MUO, and have high fasting blood glucose, triglycerides, and HOMA-IR. Additional large-scale prospective studies are necessary to affirm these results.