A low–glycemic index and –glycemic load diet is associated with not only higher intakes of micronutrients but also higher intakes of saturated fat and sodium in Japanese children and adolescents: the National Health and Nutrition Survey

Abstract

We investigated the hypothesis that the dietary glycemic index (GI) and glycemic load (GL) of Japanese children is associated with both favorable and unfavorable aspects of dietary intake. This cross-sectional study was based on 1-day weighed dietary record data from 3866 children in the 2012 National Health and Nutrition Survey, Japan. The GI of foods was assigned based on a stepwise published strategy using values from common GI databases. Mean dietary GI and GL were, respectively, 63.4 and 108.2 for children aged 1-6 years, 64.7 and 166.5 for those aged 7-14 years, and 66.3 and 196.0 for those aged 15-19 years. Irrespective of age, the top contributor to dietary GL was white rice (GI 76; 48%-60%). White rice not only was positively associated with dietary GI but also contributed most (28%-35%) to interindividual variation in dietary GI. For dietary GL, ≈90% of the variation was explained by carbohydrate-rich foods (mainly white rice; 43%-70%), all of which were positive predictors. At the nutrient level, only carbohydrate intake was positively associated with dietary GI and GL, whereas intakes of all other nutrients including saturated fat and sodium showed inverse associations (with some exceptions). In conclusion, dietary GI and GL of Japanese children were primarily determined by the high-GI food white rice and were thus relatively high compared with those observed in Western countries. A low-GI and -GL diet was associated with both favorable (higher intakes of micronutrients) and unfavorable (higher intakes of saturated fat and sodium) aspects of dietary patterns.