Egg consumption and non-alcoholic fatty liver disease: a prospective cohort study

Abstract

To explore the association between egg consumption and the risk of non-alcoholic fatty liver disease(NAFLD), which will provide epidemiological evidence for NAFLD prevention. A total of 6734 non-NAFLD participants(5500 men and 1234 women, aged(45±14) years old)in the Kailuan cohort followed up in 2014-2015 were enrolled. Semi-quantitative food frequency questionnaires were used to collect the diet frequency, including the consumption of eggs, over the past years. Then the score of dietary approaches to stop hypertension(DASH) was calculated. Abdominal ultrasound was applied for fatty liver diagnosis. The Kaplan-Meier method was used to estimate the cumulative incidences of NAFLD for the three groups(0-4, 5-7 and >7 eggs/week). Furthermore, Cox regression models under various adjusted factors were used to compare the risks of NAFLD. During the median follow-up of 45 months, 1484 NAFLDs were identified among 6734 non-NAFLD participants. The 4-year cumulative incidence rates of NAFLD for the individuals consuming 0-4, 5-7, and >7 eggs/week were 27.1%, 19.9% and 29.6%(P<0.05). The DASH score was significantly higher in those who consumed 5-7 eggs/week than in the other two groups(P<0.001). After adjusting confounders, including DASH score and dietary cholesterol, we found that compared with those consuming 5-7 eggs/week, the individuals with 0-4 and >7 eggs/week had a higher NAFLD hazard, with hazard ratios(95% confidence interval) of 1.20(1.03, 1.41) and 1.25(1.06, 1.47), respectively. The association was more significant in the population with a higher DASH score(P_(interaction)=0.02). Eating 5-7 eggs/week may have the lowest risk of NAFLD, suggesting taking a moderate amount of eggs to prevent NAFLD, even if the overall diet quality is relatively healthy.