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ARS Home » Plains Area » Houston, Texas » Children's Nutrition Research Center » Research » Publications at this Location » Publication #212104
Title: The Relationship among Alcohol Consumption, Dietery Intake, and Body Mass Index in Young Adults

Author
item MAY, MARY - PENNINGTON BIOMED CTR
item O'NEIL, CAROL - LOUISIANA STATE UNIV
item YANG, SU-JAU - BAYLOR COLLEGE OF MED
item Nicklas, Theresa
item RANGANATHAN, RAJI - BAYLOR COLLEGE OF MED
item BERENSON, GERALD - TULANE UNIVERSITY

Submitted to: Journal Of The American Dietetic Association
Publication Type: Abstract Only
Publication Acceptance Date: 7/1/2005
Publication Date: 8/1/2005
Citation: May, M.C., O'Neil, C.E., Yang, S-J., Nicklas, T.A., Ranganathan, R., Berenson, G.S. 2005. The relationship among alcohol consumption, dietery intake, and body mass index in young adults [abstract]. Journal of the American Dietetic Association. 105(8):A-60.

Interpretive Summary:

Technical Abstract: Little is known about the relationship of diet and weight to alcohol consumption in young adults. Dietary intake data were collected in 1995–1996 on 1,335 young adults (20–38 years) (62% female; 27% black) using a semi-quantitative food-frequency questionnaire (YAQ), and the Health Lifestyle-Behavior Questionnaire assessed alcohol consumption. BMI and WC were also determined. Alcohol consumption was higher (p=0.022) in males (76.2%) than females (70.9%) and higher (p=0.022) in whites (74.3%) than blacks (69.2%). Alcohol intake (% energy) was significantly different (p=0.001) among light (1.5+/-0.2; n=774), moderate (8.5+/-0.4; n=89), and heavy (16+/-0.6; n=60) drinkers. When total energy was adjusted for gender and race, non-drinkers (2310+/-51; n=326) consumed more energy than drinkers (4205+/-33; n=923). After adjusting, heavy drinkers consumed more (p=0.001) energy (3063+/-158 kcals) than non- (2282+/-56), light (2365+/-37), or moderate drinkers (2408+/-112). Adjusted means of non-alcohol energy did not differ among the groups. Non-drinkers consumed more (p=0.0001) energy from carbohydrates (292+/-2.0 kcals; 52.2%) than drinkers (284+/-1.3; 50.5%). Carbohydrate intake decreased as alcohol consumption increased (P=0.0001). Generally, protein consumption was not different between drinkers and non-drinkers; heavy drinkers consumed less (p=0.002) protein (grams/percent of energy) than non-drinkers or light drinkers. Non-drinkers (83+/-0.7) consumed more (p=0.007) energy from fat than drinkers (81+/-0.5). Fat intake increased in dose-dependent fashion. Non-drinkers (29+/-0.4) had significantly higher (p=0.006) BMIs than drinkers (27.9+/-0.03); there was no difference in physical activity in these groups. Mean WC for drinkers (87.6+/-0.6) was lower (p=0.002) than that of non-drinkers (90.5+/-0.9). Data suggest an inverse relationship between alcohol consumption and weight parameters.