Better adherence to the life's essential 8 can reduce the risk of gallstone disease: mediated by inflammation and oxidative stress.

BACKGROUND

This study aims to systematically investigate the association between the life's essential 8 (LE8) and gallstone disease (GSD), and further examine whether inflammation and oxidative stress mediate this relationship, so as to provide more scientific evidence for developing targeted preventive measures against GSD.

METHODS

This is a cross-sectional study utilizing baseline survey data from the China Multi-Ethnic Cohort (CMEC). Multivariate logistic regression and multiple linear regression models were employed to investigate the relationships among the LE8 score, inflammatory and oxidative stress biomarkers, and GSD. restricted cubic spline (RCS) regression analysis was employed to further investigate potential nonlinear relationships between LE8 and GSD. Additionally, the "mediation" package in R was utilized to determine whether the association between LE8 and GSD was mediated by inflammation and oxidative stress. Finally, subgroup and interaction analyses were conducted to understand the specific effects of LE8 on GSD across different populations.

RESULTS

This study ultimately included 85,302 subjects with complete data. The overall prevalence of GSD was 7.26%. In a multivariate logistic regression model fully adjusted for age, gender, ethnicity, household registration, marital status, region, education level, and annual household income, the LE8 score showed a significant negative correlation with GSD risk (For each 10-point increase in LE8: OR = 0.833, 95% CI: 0.815-0.852, P < 0.001), and this association exhibited a significant nonlinear trend (P for nonlinear = 0.005). The results of the mediation analysis further indicated that the relationship between LE8 and GSD was partially mediated by inflammation and oxidative stress, with mediation proportions of 2.85 and 5.21%, respectively. Additionally, subgroup and interaction analyses indicated that the preventive effect of increased LE8 score on GSD was more pronounced in individuals under 50 years old, females, and those of Han ethnicity.

CONCLUSION

Among the Chinese adult population, the LE8 score exhibited a significant nonlinear inverse dose-response relationship with GSD. This inverse association was partially mediated by improving the body's inflammatory and oxidative stress responses. These new findings contribute to developing novel and more targeted public health interventions for the prevention and management of GSD.