Introduction & Objective: Prior studies report that consumption of added sugar is associated with metabolic syndrome (MetS), but few have evaluated this association in US Hispanic/Latino adults. Cross-sectional and longitudinal associations between added sugars intake and MetS were evaluated in a large cohort of US Hispanic/Latino adults.
Methods: Cross-sectional (n=10,624) and longitudinal (n=4,141) data from adults aged 18-74 years without diabetes were evaluated in the multi-site Hispanic Community Health Study/Study of Latinos. Added sugar intake was assessed at baseline from two 24-hour dietary recalls using the National Cancer Institute methodology. We classified participants using quintiles of grams of added sugar intake per day, per 1,000 kcal. We used the International Diabetes Federation definition of MetS. Odds ratios for the cross-sectional analysis and hazard ratios for the longitudinal analysis were estimated by survey logistic and Cox models, respectively, adjusting for sociodemographic characteristics, BMI, health behaviors and diet quality using AHEI-2010 without the sugar sweetened drinks component.
Results: The baseline prevalence of MetS was 39%. There were 1,415 incident cases of MetS over a mean of 6.2 years of follow-up (range 3.4 - 9.6 years). Those in the fifth (highest) quintile of added sugars (>46.4 g/day/1000kcal) had 37% higher odds of MetS (OR 1.37, 95% CI 1.01-1.87; p-trend 0.03) compared to the lowest quintile. The association of added sugar with incident MetS was not significant.
Conclusion: Intake of added sugar was associated with prevalent MetS among US Hispanic/Latino adults in a dose-response fashion, independent of diet quality and confounders. However, this association was not confirmed for incident MetS. This finding supports guidelines to limit added sugars, but additional studies are needed to better understand the risk associated with excessive added sugar intake over time.
L.A. Rodriguez: None. P.T. Bradshaw: None. A.M. Kanaya: None. A. Akushevich: None. L. Corsino: None. S. Albrecht: None. C.R. Isasi: None. Y. Mossavar-Rahmani: None. L. Van Horn: None. L. Gallo: None. J. Cai: None. D. Sotres-Alvarez: None.
The Hispanic Community Health Study/Study of Latinos was carried out as a collaborative study supported by contracts from the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute (NHLBI) to theUniversity of North Carolina (N01-HC65233), University of Miami (N01-HC65234), AlbertEinstein College of Medicine (N01-HC65235), Northwestern University (N01-HC65236), and San Diego State University (N01-HC65237). The following Institutes/Centers/Offices contribute to the HCHS/SOL through a transfer of funds to the NHLBI: National Center on Minority Healthand Health Disparities, the National Institute of Deafness and Other Communications Disorders, the National Institute of Dental and Craniofacial Research, the National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases (NIDDK), the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke, and the Office of Dietary Supplements. Dr. Rodriguez received support from The Permanente Medical Group (TPMG) Delivery Science Fellowship Program, NIDDK grant T32DK116684, a NIDDK-funded Diabetes Research for Equity through Advanced Multilevel Science Center for Diabetes Translation Research (DREAMS-CDTR) Pilot and Feasibility Award (1P30DK92924), and an NIDDK Administrative Supplement Award R18DK122372-04S1.
