AUTHOR=Xiong Huali , Zhao Peng , Ma Fengxun , Tang Dayi , Liu Daiqiang 

TITLE=Spicy food intake and overweight/obesity in rural Southwest China: findings from a cross-sectional study

JOURNAL=Frontiers in Nutrition

VOLUME=Volume 12 - 2025

YEAR=2025

URL=https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/nutrition/articles/10.3389/fnut.2025.1526775

DOI=10.3389/fnut.2025.1526775

ISSN=2296-861X

ABSTRACT=BackgroundSpicy food is an essential part of the culinary culture in rural southwest China, while little is known about the association between spicy food intake and overweight/obesity. This study was undertaken to explore the association between spicy food intake and overweight/obesity by a cross-sectional study.MethodWe enrolled 2,995 individuals aged 30–79 years living in Rongchang, Chongqing municipality, southwest China from The China Multi-Ethnic Cohort Study, which was deemed to be the largest cohort study in southwest China. A multivariable-adjusted logistic regression model was applied to estimate the association between spicy food intake and overweight/obesity. Additionally, subgroup and sensitivity analyses were performed to verify the stability of the results.ResultsA total of 81.67% of participants had the habit of consuming spicy food. The overall prevalence of overweight/obesity was 57.53%. Spicy food intake (OR = 2.913, 95%CI: 1.319–6.434) and frequency of spicy food intake (OR = 1.300, 95%CI: 1.164–1.452) were positively associated with overweight/obesity. Compared with the participants who never consumed spicy food, after adjusting for confounding factors, the adjusted ORs (95% CIs) in frequency of spicy food intake in 1–2 days/week, 3–5 days/week, 6–7 days/week subgroups were 3.985 (1.855–8.560), 4.381 (2.011–9.543), 6.515 (3.101–13.686), respectively. Subgroup analyses stratified by gender and age group, as well as sensitivity analyses, have consistently revealed a similar association between spicy food intake/the frequency of spicy food intake and overweight/obesity.ConclusionThis study could provide additional evidence for overweight and the obesity epidemic among rural adults in southwest China. Reducing spicy food intake might benefit from weight management.