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Index of Nutritional Quality (INQ) and the Risk of Obesity in Male Adolescents: a Case-Control Study

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Abstract

Dietary factors may play a key role in the etiology of obesity. The Index of Nutritional Quality (INQ) provides a comprehensive overview of the nutrients content of the diet. This study aimed to investigate the association between INQ and obesity in male adolescents. We hypothesize that receiving a high-quality diet reduces the risk of overweight or obese. This study was carried out on 214 obese/overweight as the case group and 321 normal-weight male adolescents as the control group. Dietary intakes of the participants were collected using a food frequency questionnaire (FFQ). The FFQ-derived dietary data were used to calculate the INQ scores. After adjustments for age and height, an inverse association was found between obesity and INQ of iron, vitamin B6, and magnesium, and a positive association was found between obesity and INQ of zinc (all P < 0.05). After further adjustments for nutritional knowledge and calorie intake, an inverse association was observed between obesity and INQ of vitamin C, iron, vitamin B6, pantothenic acid, selenium, and magnesium (all P < 0.05). The positive association of obesity and INQ of zinc remained significant after adjustments. A higher intake of vitamin C, iron, vitamin B6, pantothenic acid, selenium, and magnesium and a lower intake of zinc may be protective against adolescent obesity. More longitudinal studies are required to investigate the relationship between these nutrients and obesity.

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Funding

This study is related to the project NO. 1398/10596 from Student Research Committee, Shahid Beheshti University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran. All colleagues in this university are warmly appreciated for their support and contribution.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Student Research Committee, Cancer Research Center, Shahid Beheshti University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran

    Maryam Gholamalizadeh

  2. Department of Clinical Nutrition and Dietetics, National Nutrition and Food Technology Research Institute, Shahid Beheshti University of Medical Science, Tehran, Iran

    Samira Rastgoo & Narges Ashoori

  3. Cancer Research Center, Shahid Beheshti University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran

    Saeid Doaei & Alireza Mosavi Jarrahi

  4. Department of Nutritional Sciences, School of Health, Arak University of Medical Sciences, Arak, Iran

    Farhad Vahid

  5. Department of Community Nutrition, School of Nutritional Sciences and Dietetics, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran

    Hanieh Malmir

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  1. Maryam Gholamalizadeh
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  2. Samira Rastgoo
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  3. Saeid Doaei
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  4. Farhad Vahid
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  7. Alireza Mosavi Jarrahi
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Correspondence to Alireza Mosavi Jarrahi.

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This study has been approved by local ethics review boards at Shahid Beheshti University of Medical Sciences; all participants signed a written informed consent before the start of the study.

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Gholamalizadeh, M., Rastgoo, S., Doaei, S. et al. Index of Nutritional Quality (INQ) and the Risk of Obesity in Male Adolescents: a Case-Control Study. Biol Trace Elem Res 199, 1701–1706 (2021). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12011-020-02297-3

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