Differing dietary patterns according to body composition

Yea-Chan Lee^1,2Hyung-Mi Kim³Hye Sun Lee¹Soyoung Jeon¹Yu-Jin Kwon^4*JI WON LEE^1,2*

• ¹College of Medicine, Yonsei University, Seoul, Republic of Korea
• ²Severance Hospital, Seoul, Republic of Korea
• ³Dongduk Women's University, Seoul, Republic of Korea
• ⁴Yongin Severance Hospital, College of Medicine, Yonsei University, Seoul, Seoul, Republic of Korea

Background: This study aimed to investigate dietary patterns in relation to body composition, specifically neither low muscle mass nor high body fat (N), low muscle mass only (LMo), high body fat only (HFo), and low muscle mass with high body fat (LMHF), using large-scale nationwide data.Methods: A total of 15,917 participants from the 2008-2011 Korea National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey were analyzed. Propensity score matching values for the predicted probability of patients with LMo, HFo, or LMHF were estimated using logistic regression analysis while adjusting for confounders. An analysis of covariance was used to compare daily macronutrient intake and weekly consumption frequency of food groups among the study groups, adjusting for total calories.Participants in the LMHF and HFo groups consumed lower carbohydrates and higher proportions of proteins and fats compared to the N group. Those in the LMHF and LMo groups had less frequent consumption of rice and vegetables and more frequent intake of ultra-processed foods. Additionally, participants in the LMo and HFo groups consumed beverages more frequently compared to those in the N group. Conclusions: Imbalances in body composition, such as LMo, HFo, and LMHF, are associated with less favorable dietary patterns, including higher consumption of ultra-processed foods and beverages, and lower intake of rice and vegetables. Further research is needed to explore targeted nutritional interventions for these groups.