TABLE 4.
Relative concentrations of plasma inflammatory markers across quintiles of the EDII in the Nurses’ Health Study (n = 5230)1
| Quintile 1 (−2.27 to <−0.28; most anti-inflammatory diets) | Quintile 2(−0.28 to <−0.12) | Quintile 3(−0.12 to <0.004) | Quintile 4(0.004 to <0.16) | Quintile 5 (0.16–1.49; most proinflammatory diets) | P-trend2 | |
| IL-6 | ||||||
| Age-adjusted | 1 | 1.10 (1.03, 1.17) | 1.22 (1.14, 1.30) | 1.31 (1.23, 1.40) | 1.47 (1.38, 1.58) | <0.0001 |
| Multivariable-adjusted3 | 1 | 1.09 (1.03, 1.16) | 1.20 (1.12, 1.27) | 1.25 (1.17, 1.33) | 1.36 (1.28, 1.45) | <0.0001 |
| CRP | ||||||
| Age-adjusted | 1 | 1.29 (1.16, 1.42) | 1.41 (1.28, 1.56) | 1.62 (1.46, 1.79) | 2.09 (1.89, 2.31) | <0.0001 |
| Multivariable-adjusted3 | 1 | 1.27 (1.15, 1.39) | 1.38 (1.26, 1.52) | 1.52 (1.38, 1.57) | 1.82 (1.65, 2.01) | <0.0001 |
| TNFαR2 | ||||||
| Age-adjusted | 1 | 1.03 (1.01, 1.06) | 1.05 (1.03, 1.08) | 1.09 (1.06, 1.12) | 1.14 (1.11, 1.17) | <0.0001 |
| Multivariable-adjusted3 | 1 | 1.03 (1.00, 1.06) | 1.05 (1.03, 1.08) | 1.09 (1.06, 1.11) | 1.13 (1.10, 1.16) | <0.0001 |
Values are relative concentrations (95% CIs) of biomarkers in higher EDII quintiles relative to quintile 1 as the reference quintile (e.g., the ratio of the concentration in quintile 5 to that in quintile 1), n = 1046 in each quintile. All values were back-transformed (ex) because biomarker data were ln-transformed before analyses. CRP, C-reactive protein; EDII, empirical dietary inflammatory index; TNFαR2, TNF-α receptor 2.
The P-value of the dietary index as a continuous variable adjusted for all covariates listed in footnote 3.
Adjusted for age, physical activity, smoking status, case-control status, batch effects for biomarker measurements, regular aspirin/nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drug use, menopausal status, postmenopausal hormone use, and an inflammation-related chronic disease comorbidity score. Chronic diseases and conditions included in the score were hypercholesterolemia, cancer, diabetes, high blood pressure, heart disease, and rheumatoid or other arthritis.