The Cross‐Sectional Association between Eating Frequency and Body Composition among Adults in South China

Abstract

ObjectiveTo explore whether eating frequency (EF) was associated with body composition in Chinese adults.MethodsA total of 1017 adults (53.8% men) aged 25–65 years were included from an on‐going prospective cohort study carried out in Southwest China since 2013. Dietary data were collected by validated 24‐h dietary recalls. EF was calculated with two different methods based on the energy intake (EI) and the eating time interval: all eating occasions providing at least 50 kcal (or 210 kJ) with a minimum time interval between occasion at least 15 min or 30 min. Each EF was divided into meal frequency (MF) and snack frequency (SF). Body height and weight were measured to calculate percentage of body fat (%BF), fat mass index (FMI) and fat‐free mass index (FFMI). Multiple linear regression models were used to examine the association between EF and body composition parameters.ResultsEF and SF were positively associated with %BF, FMI (p<0.01) and negatively related to FFMI (p<0.01) after adjustment for age, occupation, personal monthly income, smoking status, alcohol, physical activity, energy intake, protein intake, fat intake and carbohydrate intake. However, MF was not associated with %BF, FMI or FFMI.ConclusionOur results indicate that higher EF and SF were associated with higher body fatness and lower fat‐free body mass in Chinese adults.Support or Funding InformationFunding source: All phases of this study were supported by research grant from the National Nature Science Foundation of China (No.81472976).