Nutritional status of Japanese-Brazilian subjects: comparison across gender and generation

• Autor(a) principal: Freire, Renata D. [UNIFESP]
• Data de Publicação: 2003
• Outros Autores: Cardoso, M. A., Shinzato, Alexandre R. [UNIFESP], Ferreira, Sandra Roberta Gouvea [UNIFESP], Japanese-Brazilian Diabet Study Group
• Tipo de documento: Artigo
• Idioma: eng
• Título da fonte: Repositório Institucional da UNIFESP
• Texto Completo: http://dx.doi.org/10.1079/BJN2002824; http://repositorio.unifesp.br/handle/11600/27219
• topic: nutrition survey; dietary patterns; abdominal obesity; Japanese-Brazilians

The present paper describes a nutritional survey carried out among Japanese-Brazilian subjects living in Bauru, south-eastern Brazil. Data were from a cross-sectional population-based study of 1283 first-generation Japanese-Brazilian subjects (Japan-born; 127 men and 121 women) and second-generation Japanese-Brazilian subjects (Brazil-born; 456 men and 573 women) aged 30-90 years. Anthropometric measurements and % body fat were measured and BMI and waist:hip ratio calculated. Dietary assessment was performed using a validated food-frequency questionnaire. A considerable proportion of men (51 %) and women (47 %) had excess weight (BMI>24.9 kg/m(2)). A greater waist circumference in men and women (age-adjusted by covariance analysis) was observed among Brazil-born participants. in general, only 10 % of the participants reported current practice of sports or other vigorous physical activity. Age-adjusted mean energy intakes and % energy from macronutrients were found to be similar across generations. the age-adjusted mean daily % energy intake from fat were similar across generations: among Japan-born participants, they were 31.5 (95 % CI 30.6, 32.4) % for men and 32.6 (95 % CI 31.7, 33.5) % for women. the respective figures for Brazil-born subjects were 32.1 (95 % CI 31.6, 32.6) % and 33.2 (95 % CI 32.7, 33.5) %. These values are quite different from the usual intakes reported in Japan during the last decades (about 25 %). Taking into account the traditional Japanese diet, a high energy density diet and a sedentary lifestyle may be implicated in the high prevalence of central obesity and metabolic syndrome observed among Japanese-Brazilian subjects across gender and generations.