Journal
PUBLIC HEALTH NUTRITION
Volume 19, Issue 9, Pages 1624-1634Publisher
CAMBRIDGE UNIV PRESS
DOI: 10.1017/S1368980015002979
Keywords
Meal frequency; Snack frequency; Diet quality; Obesity
Funding
- Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology of Japan [15K16213]
- Grants-in-Aid for Scientific Research [15K16213] Funding Source: KAKEN
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Objective: To examine how different definitions of meals and snacks can affect the associations of meal frequency (MF) and snack frequency (SF) with dietary intake and adiposity measures. Design: Based on 7 d weighed dietary record data, all eating occasions providing >= 210 kJ of energy were divided into meals or snacks based on contribution to energy intake (>= 15 % or < 15 %) or time (06.00-10.00, 12.00-15.00 and 18.00-21.00 hours; other). Diet quality was assessed using the Healthy Diet Indicator (HDI) and Mediterranean Diet Score (MDS). Setting: Great Britain. Subjects: British adults aged 19-64 years (n 1487). Results: MF based on energy contribution was associated with higher intake of dietary fibre, lower intakes of non-milk extrinsic sugars and alcohol, and higher HDI (only men) and MDS. MF based on time was associated with higher HDI and MDS in women only. Conversely, irrespective of the definition of snacks, SF was associated with higher intakes of confectionery and alcohol, lower intakes of cereals, protein, fat and dietary fibre, and lower HDI (except for SF based on energy contribution in women) and MDS. After adjustment for potential confounders, MF based on time, but not MF based on energy contribution, was positively associated with BMI and waist circumference in men only. SF was positively associated with BMI and waist circumference, irrespective of the definition of snacks. Conclusions: Higher SF was consistently associated with lower diet quality and higher adiposity measures, while associations with MF varied depending on the definition of meals and sex.
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