Table 3.
Linear associations of sugar intake with chronic disease risk factors, and means of those risk factors stratified by quartile of sugar intake (n = 380–1039)1
| Sugar intake2,3 (range, g/d) |
β4 (95% CI) |
P | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| n | Quartile 1 (23 – <66) |
Quartile 2 (66– <93) |
Quartile 3 (93 – <121) |
Quartile 4 (121 – <217) |
|||
| SBP, mm Hg | 879 | 116.7 ± 1.0 | 118.4 ± 0.8 | 117.7 ± 0.8 | 120.2 ± 0.8 | 0.78 (0.14, 1.43) | 0.018 |
| DBP, mm Hg | 881 | 68.6 ± 0.8 | 70.7 ± 0.6 | 70.8 ± 0.6 | 71.5 ± 0.7 | 0.88 (0.39, 1.37) | <0.00015 |
| Triglycerides, mg/dL6 | 911 | 66.0 (62.4, 69.8) | 74.8 (71.3, 78.5) | 81.0 (77.1, 85.0) | 81.9 (77.6, 86.4) | 6.09 (3.98, 8.20) | <0.00015 |
| Cholesterol, mg/dL | 921 | 226.3 ± 3.3 | 229.8 ± 2.6 | 215.6 ± 2.6 | 208.6 ± 2.9 | −5.09 (−7.21, −2.97) |
<0.00015 |
| HDL, mg/dL | 919 | 65.8 ± 1.1 | 64.9 ± 1.0 | 61.0 ± 1.1 | 59.7 ± 1.1 | −1.62 (−2.42, −0.82) | <0.00015 |
| LDL, mg/dL | 921 | 148.5 ± 2.6 | 148.4 ± 2.2 | 138.7 ± 2.3 | 130.6 ± 2.5 | −5.08 (−7.21, −2.97) | <0.00015 |
| Leptin, ng/mL6 | 810 | 6.8 (6.3, 7.4) | 6.9 (6.4, 7.4) | 7.0 (6.5, 7.5) | 7.4 (6.8, 8.0) | 4.44 (1.43, 7.53) | 0.0045 |
| Adiponectin, µg/mL | 959 | 10.4 ± 0.4 | 9.7 ± 0.3 | 9.6 ± 0.3 | 9.5 ± 0.3 | −0.32 (−0.57, −0.06) | 0.015 |
| Ghrelin, pg/mL | 809 | 424.1 ± 11.1 | 424.2 ± 10.0 | 411.6 ± 10.8 | 404.5 ± 11.8 | −0.65 (−9.11, 7.81) | 0.88 |
| HbA1c, % | 960 | 5.6 ± 0.02 | 5.5 ± 0.02 | 5.5 ± 0.02 | 5.5 ± 0.02 | −0.02 (−0.03, 0.00) | 0.09 |
| Glucose, mg/dL | 1038 | 94.2 ± 0.7 | 93.0 ± 0.6 | 92.3 ± 0.6 | 92.9 ± 0.6 | −0.03 (−0.51, 0.44) | 0.90 |
| Insulin, µU/dL6 | 787 | 12.2 (11.4, 13.0) | 12.0 (11.4, 12.8) | 12.6 (11.8, 13.4) | 12.6 (11.8, 13.5) | 2.29 (−0.14, 4.78) | 0.069 |
| HOMA-IR6 | 782 | 2.8 (2.6, 3.0) | 2.7 (2.5, 2.9) | 2.9 (2.7, 3.1) | 2.9 (2.7, 3.1) | 2.42 (−0.18, 5.11) | 0.064 |
| IGF-I, ng/mL | 386 | 272.8 ± 9.5 | 246.3 ± 8.7 | 250.9 ± 8.5 | 248.0 ± 9.2 | −3.53 (−10.34, 3.28) | 0.31 |
| CRP, mg/dL6 | 782 | 0.08 (0.07, 0.10) | 0.11 (0.09, 0.13) | 0.10 (0.08, 0.12) | 0.13 (0.10, 0.15) | 5.91 (−0.97, 13.3) | 0.094 |
| IL-6, µg/L6 | 379 | 0.08 (0.06, 0.13) | 0.10 (0.07, 0.12) | 0.09 (0.07, 0.12) | 0.09 (0.07, 0.12) | 3.94 (−6.03, 15.0) | 0.45 |
Sample size varies because of outliers and missing data. Multiple linear regression models were adjusted for age (continuous), sex, BMI (continuous), smoking status (yes or no), and year of data collection. Abbreviations: SBP, systolic blood pressure; DBP, diastolic blood pressure; HOMA-IR, homeostasis model of insulin resistance; IGF-I, Insulin-like growth factor I; CRP, C-reactive protein; IL-6, interleukin-6.
Sugar intake was estimated using the formula: ln(sugar intake) = 13.07 + 0.33(δ13C) − 0.23(δ15N) (19)
Means of chronic disease risk biomarkers by quartile of sugar intake are least squares means (±SE), adjusted for age (continuous), sex, BMI (continuous), and smoking status (yes or no). Geometric means (95% CI) are given for log-transformed variables.
Slopes are interpreted as change in chronic disease risk factor for each 25g increase in total sugar intake
Associations remained statistically significant after Bonferroni-Holm correction
Log-transformed values were used for regression analyses; slopes have been back transformed for ease of interpretation and are interpreted as percentage change in the chronic disease risk factor for each 25g increase in sugar intake