AUTHOR=Lin Yi , Shi Xiaocong , Wu Weijia , Chen Xiyi 

TITLE=Association of non-high-density lipoprotein cholesterol to high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (NHHR) and sarcopenia in elderly adults

JOURNAL=Frontiers in Nutrition

VOLUME=Volume 12 - 2025

YEAR=2025

URL=https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/nutrition/articles/10.3389/fnut.2025.1614263

DOI=10.3389/fnut.2025.1614263

ISSN=2296-861X

ABSTRACT=BackgroundThis study aimed to explore the link between non-high-density lipoprotein cholesterol to high-density lipoprotein cholesterol ratio (NHHR) and sarcopenia in elderly adults using data from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES).MethodsThe dataset from NHANES 1999–2004. Different statistical analyses, including logistic regression, restricted cubic spline, two-piecewise linear regression, subgroup analyses, and interaction tests models, were used to examine the relationship between NHHR and the risk of sarcopenia.ResultsTotal 3,190 elderly participants were included and 676 (21.2%) of them had sarcopenia. In crude model, the odds ratio (OR) of NHHR on sarcopenia was 0.71 [95% confidence interval (CI), 0.66–0.77]. After adjusting for all factors, the ORs for NHHR tertiles 2 and 3 were 0.76 (95% CI: 0.58–0.99) and 0.70 (95% CI: 0.53–0.94), respectively, with a significant trend (p = 0.014). An L-shaped relationship between NHHR and sarcopenia was found (P for non-linearity = 0.046), with 3.01 being the inflection point. Subgroup analysis results indicated a stable and persistent association between NHHR and sarcopenia across multiple subgroups, with the exception of diabetes.ConclusionWe found that NHHR was negatively associated with risk of sarcopenia in elderly adults.