Background and objectives: To investigate the association of dietary patterns and dietary diversity with cardiometabolic disease risk factors among South Asians.
Methods and study design: In a population based study conducted in 2010-11, we recruited 16,287 adults aged >20 years residing in Delhi, Chennai, and Karachi. Diet was assessed using an interviewer-administered 26-item food frequency questionnaire. Principal component analysis identified three dietary patterns: Prudent, Indian, and Non-Vegetarian. We also computed a dietary diversity score. Multinomial and binary logistic regressions were used to calculate adjusted prevalence (95% confidence intervals) of cardio-metabolic disease risk factors across quartiles of dietary pattern and dietary diversity scores.
Results: The adjusted prevalence of diagnosed diabetes was lower among participants in the highest versus lowest quartile of the Prudent Pattern (4.7% [3.8-5.6] versus 10.3% [8.5-12.0]), and the Indian Pattern (4.8% [3.7-5.9] versus 8.7% [6.7-10.6] in highest versus lowest quartile, respectively). Participants following the Indian Pattern also had lower adjusted prevalence of diagnosed hypertension (7.0% [5.4-8.5] versus 10.6% [8.6-12.5] in highest versus lowest quartile, respectively). Participants in the highest versus lowest quartile of the dietary diversity score had a lower adjusted prevalence of diagnosed diabetes (4.1% [3.0-5.2] versus 8.2% [7.1-9.3]), diagnosed hypertension (6.7% [5.3-8.1] versus 10.3% [9.1-11.5]), and undiagnosed hypertension (14.2% [12.0-16.4] versus 18.5% [16.9-20.1]).
Conclusions: High dietary diversity appears to be protective against cardio-metabolic disease risk factors in this urban cohort of South Asian adults. Further investigation to understand the underlying mechanism of this observation is warranted.