The Effect of High Carbohydrate-to-fat Intake Ratios on Hypo-HDL-cholesterolemia Risk and HDL-cholesterol Levels over a 12-year Follow-up

• Published in: Scientific reports Vol. 10; no. 1; p. 913
• Main Authors: Lee, Hye Ah, An, Hyoin
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: London Nature Publishing Group UK 22.01.2020; Nature Publishing Group
• Subjects: 692/163/2743/2099; 692/499; Adult; Aged; Asian Continental Ancestry Group; Carbohydrates; Cholesterol; Cholesterol, HDL - blood; Cholesterol, HDL - deficiency; Cohort Studies; Dietary Carbohydrates - administration & dosage; Dietary Fats - administration & dosage; Epidemiology; Female; Follow-Up Studies; Genomes; High density lipoprotein; Humanities and Social Sciences; Humans; Incidence; Male; Middle Aged; multidisciplinary; Prevalence; Republic of Korea - epidemiology; Science; Science (multidisciplinary); Sex differences; Sex Factors; Time Factors; Republic of Korea
• ISSN: 2045-2322; 2045-2322
• DOI: 10.1038/s41598-020-57931-w

Considering the strong correlation between carbohydrate and fat intake, we defined and assessed the association of the carbohydrate-to-fat ratio with the high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-c) level using 12-year follow-up data from the community-based cohort of the Korean Genome Epidemiology Study. We evaluated the long-term changes in HDL-c levels according to quartiles of carbohydrate-to-fat ratio using a mixed model. We also assessed the effect of the carbohydrate-to-fat ratio on the prevalence and incidence of hypo-HDL-cholesterolemia. Of 6,627 subjects, the prevalence of undiagnosed hypo-HDL-cholesterolemia at baseline was 35.3% (n = 2,339). Among the disease-free subjects, 56.8% developed hypo-HDL-cholesterolemia (incidence = 92/1,000 person-years). The prevalence and incidence of hypo-HDL-cholesterolemia were higher in females than in males. The highest carbohydrate-to-fat ratio quartile, which was characterized by high and low intake of carbohydrate and fat, was consistently associated with a lower HDL-c level during the 12-year follow up. Moreover, those in the highest quartile had a 1.14-fold greater risk of incident hypo-HDL-cholesterolemia than those in the lowest quartile, with a significant dose-response relationship. We found that high and low intake of carbohydrate and fat, respectively, was consistently associated with a low HDL-c level over a prolonged period. More research is needed to promote appropriate intake of macronutrients.