Application of the <= 10:1 carbohydrate to fiber ratio to identify healthy grain foods and its association with cardiometabolic risk factors

Author(s)

Fontanelli, Mariane de Mello ^[1] ; Micha, Renata ^[2] ; Sales, Cristiane Hermes ^[1] ; Liu, Junxiu ^[2] ; Mozaffarian, Dariush ^[2] ; Fisberg, Regina Mara ^[1]

Affiliation

^[1] Univ Sao Paulo, Sch Publ Hlth, Dept Nutr, Ave Dr Arnaldo 715, BR-01246904 Sao Paulo, SP - Brazil

^[2] Tufts Univ, Friedman Sch Nutr Sci & Policy, 150 Harrison Ave, Boston, MA 02111 - USA

• Document type: Journal article
• Source: EUROPEAN JOURNAL OF NUTRITION; v. 59, n. 7, p. 3269-3279, OCT 2020.
• Web of Science Citations: 4

Abstract

Purpose Optimal metrics to assess healthfulness of carbohydrate-rich products are not well established. We investigated how the content per 10 g of carbohydrate of at least 1 g of fiber (<= 10:1-ratio) related to nutritional quality in grain foods as well as cardiometabolic risk factors in Sao Paulo, Brazil. Methods Data were from the cross-sectional population-based study 2015 Health Survey of Sao Paulo, including a probabilistic sample of urban residents in the city. Participants (n = 1188) aged 20 + years completed a 24-h dietary recall and a subsample of 603 participants had blood samples, anthropometrics, and blood pressure measurements collected, and answered a second 24-h recall. Energy and nutrient contents of grain foods meeting or not meeting the <= 10:1-ratio were evaluated using linear regression models. The association between consumption (percent energy, %E) of grain foods meeting the <= 10:1-ratio and cardiometabolic risk factors were investigated using linear regression models. Results Foods meeting the <= 10:1-ratio had less available carbohydrate (- 3.0 g/serving), total sugar (- 7.4 g/serving), added sugar (- 7.2 g/serving) and saturated fat (- 0.7 g/serving), and more dietary fiber (+ 3.5 g/serving), protein (+ 2.1 g/serving), potassium (+ 100.1 mg/serving), iron (+ 0.9 mg/serving), selenium (+ 4.2 mu g/serving), magnesium (+ 38.7 mg/serving), and zinc (+ 1.1 mg/serving). Each increase in 1%E consumption of grain foods meeting the <= 10:1-ratio was associated with lower levels of blood triacylglycerol (- 10.7%), the triacylglycerol/high-density lipoprotein cholesterol ratio (- 14.9%), fasting insulin (- 13.6%), and homeostasis model assessment for insulin resistance (- 14.0%). Conclusion The <= 10:1-ratio identified grain foods with higher nutritional quality and higher intakes of these foods were associated with cardiometabolic risk factors related to atherogenic dyslipidemia and insulin resistance. (AU)

• FAPESP's process: 18/08268-6 - Carbohydrate quality index and cardiometabolic risk factors in adolescents, adults and older adults living in São Paulo and in the United States of America
• Grantee: Mariane de Mello Fontanelli
• Support Opportunities: Scholarships abroad - Research Internship - Doctorate
• FAPESP's process: 16/18742-1 - Carbohydrate Quality Index: overview of the last decade, relation with micronutrient status and insulin resistance
• Grantee: Mariane de Mello Fontanelli
• Support Opportunities: Scholarships in Brazil - Doctorate
• FAPESP's process: 12/22113-9 - Biochemical indicators of micronutrient status and usual intakes of residents from the City of São Paulo - ISA-Capital Survey 2013
• Grantee: Regina Mara Fisberg
• Support Opportunities: Regular Research Grants