Eating Frequency Is Not Associated with Obesity in Chinese Adults

Xinge Zhang, Yueqiao Wang, Jason S. Brinkley, Theresa M. Oniffrey, Rui Zhang, Guoxun Chen, Rui Li and Justin B. Moore
Additional contact information
Xinge Zhang: School of Health Sciences, Wuhan University, Wuhan 430071, China
Yueqiao Wang: School of Health Sciences, Wuhan University, Wuhan 430071, China
Jason S. Brinkley: Abt Associates, Durham, NC 27703, USA
Theresa M. Oniffrey: Cerus Consulting, LLC, Winston-Salem, NC 27101, USA
Rui Zhang: College of Life Sciences, South-Central University for Nationalities, Wuhan 430074, China
Guoxun Chen: Department of Nutrition, the University of Tennessee at Knoxville, Knoxville, TN 37996, USA
Rui Li: School of Health Sciences, Wuhan University, Wuhan 430071, China
Justin B. Moore: Department of Family & Community Medicine, Wake Forest School of Medicine, Wake Forest Baptist Medical Center, Medical Center Boulevard, Winston-Salem, NC 27157, USA

IJERPH, 2018, vol. 15, issue 11, 1-10

Abstract: The prevalence of overweight and obesity has been increasing globally. Recent studies suggest that eating frequency (EF) might be a factor influencing the development of overweight and obesity. This study aims to explore the association between eating frequency and obesity in Chinese adults. A cross-sectional study was conducted in Wuhan, China, from March to June 2016. A self-administered questionnaire and 24-h dietary recall were used to collect data on sociodemographic variables, lifestyle factors, nutrition knowledge, and eating frequency. Participants were divided into four groups according to eating frequency and meal timing: traditional time pattern (TTP), traditional time plus late snack pattern (TTLSP), irregular time pattern (ITP), and all-day pattern (ADP). We performed the chi-squared test and multiple logistic regression to assess associations among variables using JMP statistical software version 14.0.0 (SAS Institute Inc., Cary, NC, USA). Respondents were Chinese adults ( N = 2290; range 29–74 years; 1162 men). Lower education level, higher food budget, and lower nutrition knowledge were associated with higher likelihood of irregular EF patterns (TTLSP, ITP, or ADP). Men, non-smokers, and participants with less physical activity, lower education level, or lower nutrition knowledge were more likely to be obese. Body mass index (BMI) categorization was significantly different among EF pattern groups (χ 2 = 25.40, p = 0.003); however, this association was no longer significant in the regression model after adjustment for age, sex, education, smoking, food budget, nutrition knowledge, and physical activity. Thus, EF is not associated with obesity in Chinese adults.

Keywords: eating frequency; adiposity; sociodemographic factors; lifestyle factors; nutrition knowledge (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: I I1 I3 Q Q5 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2018
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations:

Downloads: (external link)
https://www.mdpi.com/1660-4601/15/11/2561/pdf (application/pdf)
https://www.mdpi.com/1660-4601/15/11/2561/ (text/html)

Related works:
This item may be available elsewhere in EconPapers: Search for items with the same title.

Export reference: BibTeX RIS (EndNote, ProCite, RefMan) HTML/Text

Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:gam:jijerp:v:15:y:2018:i:11:p:2561-:d:183096

Access Statistics for this article

IJERPH is currently edited by Ms. Jenna Liu

More articles in IJERPH from MDPI
Bibliographic data for series maintained by MDPI Indexing Manager ().