Abstract
BackgroundNutrition labeling has been found to affect the amount and type of food intake, with certain groups in the population, such as cancer survivors, being more aware of this information. A higher awareness of nutrition labeling is inversely related to the risk of dyslipidemia. This study therefore assessed the association between awareness of nutrition labeling and high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-C) concentration among cancer survivors in South Korea and in the general population of subjects without a history of cancer.MethodsThis cross-sectional analysis evaluated 25,156 adults who participated in the Korean National Health and Nutrition Examination Surveys (KNHANES) from 2010 to 2016. Factors influencing the association between awareness of nutrition labeling and HDL-C concentration in cancer survivors and the general population were determined by multiple regression analysis.ResultsOf the 25,156 participants, 2.88% were cancer survivors and 97.12% had no history of cancer. HDL-C concentrations were higher in subjects who were aware of nutrition labeling than in subjects who were not. Checking or using nutrition labeling had a greater effect on the management of HDL-C concentration for cancer survivors than for the general population.ConclusionAwareness of nutrition labeling was associated with better outcomes, including higher controlled HDL-C levels, and reductions in factors increasing the risk of coronary artery disease and cancer, especially in cancer survivors. Health policymakers or medical professionals should develop programs to promote the use of nutrition labeling among cancer survivors in South Korea.
Highlights
Nutrition labeling has been found to affect the amount and type of food intake, with certain groups in the population, such as cancer survivors, being more aware of this information
We found that approximately 20% of all respondents actively checked and made purchase decisions based on nutrition information, but that the percentage was significantly lower in cancer survivors than in the general population (16.30% vs. 19.32%, p < 0.0001)
high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-C) concentrations were higher in subjects who checked, or were aware of, nutrition information (Relative Risk [RR]: 1.0017, 95% Confidence Interval [CI]: 1.0004–1.0031, p = 0.0131), and while there was no significant difference in these subjects, those who made purchase decisions based on nutrition labelling had positive increases of HDL-C (p = 0.1785)
Summary
Nutrition labeling has been found to affect the amount and type of food intake, with certain groups in the population, such as cancer survivors, being more aware of this information. A higher awareness of nutrition labeling is inversely related to the risk of dyslipidemia. This study assessed the association between awareness of nutrition labeling and high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-C) concentration among cancer survivors in South Korea and in the general population of subjects without a history of cancer. Cancer survivors have a greater risk for cardiovascular disease, cancer recurrence, and second primary malignancies [2, 3]. Cancer survivors should be more invested in maintaining ideal body weight, a healthy diet, and a physical activity level to prevent chronic diseases, cancer recurrence, and second primary cancers [4]. Dietary interventions have been shown to improve diet quality, body weight, and nutrition-related biomarkers [4]. Plasma concentrations of high-density lipoprotein-cholesterol (HDL-C) have shown a strong inverse relationship to the risk of developing coronary artery disease (CAD) and cancer [6–8]. A low concentration of HDL-C is associated with obesity [7]
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