Association of diet quality with dietary inflammatory potential in youth

Rowaedh Ahmed Bawaked,Helmut Schröder,Lourdes Ribas-Barba,Maria Izquierdo-Pulido,Carmen Pérez-Rodrigo,Montserrat Fíto,Lluis Serra-Majem

doi:10.1080/16546628.2017.1328961

Abstract

ABSTRACTBackground: Diet plays a crucial role in the regulation of chronic inflammation. The sparse evidence available in adult populations indicates that diet quality is linked to the dietary inflammatory potential; however, this association has not been established in youth.Design: Data were obtained from a representative national sample of 2889 children and young people in Spain, aged 6–24 years. The dietary inflammatory potential was measured by the dietary inflammatory index (DII), and diet quality by three conceptually different measures: the Mediterranean Diet Quality Index for children and adolescents (KIDMED), energy density, and total dietary antioxidants capacity.Results: The mean DII was 1.96 ± 0.76 units Scoring for the KIDMED index and the total dietary antioxidant capacity significantly decreased (p < 0.001 and p = 0.030, respectively) across quintiles of the DII, whereas the opposite was true for energy density (p < 0.001). The effect size of these associations was strongest for energy density, followed by the KIDMED index and total dietary antioxidant capacity.Conclusion: A healthy diet characterized by high adherence to the Mediterranean diet, high total dietary antioxidant capacity, or low energy density was linked to greater anti-inflammatory potential of the diet, as measured by the DII.

Highlights

Diet plays a crucial role in the regulation of chronic inflammation [1,2]
A high score on the dietary inflammatory index (DII), which was developed to assess the inflammatory potential of the diet [7], has been associated with inflammation biomarkers such as C-reactive protein (CRP) [8,9], IL-6 [10,11], homocysteine [10], and tumor necrosis-α (TNF-α) [11]
Adherence to the Mediterranean diet, total dietary antioxidant capacity, intake of protein, polyunsaturated fatty acids, fiber, magnesium, vitamins C, E, B6, B2, and B1, and intake of fruits, vegetables, legumes, and fish decreased across the DII

Summary

Introduction

Diet plays a crucial role in the regulation of chronic inflammation [1,2]. The Western dietary pattern, high in refined grains, sugars, simple carbohydrates, red meat, and high-fat dairy products, increases the levels of pro-inflammatory markers such as C-reactive protein (CRP) and interleukin-6 (IL-6) [1,3]. A high score on the dietary inflammatory index (DII), which was developed to assess the inflammatory potential of the diet [7], has been associated with inflammation biomarkers such as CRP [8,9], IL-6 [10,11], homocysteine [10], and TNF-α [11]. The dietary inflammatory potential was measured by the dietary inflammatory index (DII), and diet quality by three conceptually different measures: the Mediterranean Diet Quality Index for children and adolescents (KIDMED), energy density, and total dietary antioxidants capacity. Conclusion: A healthy diet characterized by high adherence to the Mediterranean diet, high total dietary antioxidant capacity, or low energy density was linked to greater anti-inflammatory potential of the diet, as measured by the DII

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Conclusion