Abstract
Repeated chair stands are recognized as a measure of lower body strength. Diet quality can effect both muscle strength and mass, as well as risk of developing sarcopenia. The primary objective of this study was to examine the association of physical performance with diet quality by exploring the relationship between number of completed chair stands and diet quality in urban White and African American adults examined in Wave 3 (2009–2013) of the Healthy Aging in Neighborhoods of Diversity across the Life Span (HANDLS) study. The HANDLS study is a prospective epidemiological study designed to examine the roles of race and socioeconomic status on health disparities. Baseline wave (2004–2009) examined 3720 people. Lower body strength was measured by the number of completed repeated chair stands (0–10) by 2019 participants. Diet quality was assessed by diet diversity serving (DDS) scores (0–40), calculated using two 24-hour dietary recalls. Cross-sectional linear regression was used to determine the relationship between number of completed repeated chair stands and DDS scores, adjusting for the following covariates: race, socioeconomic status (SES), age, and sex. The mean (±SE) DDS score was 16.6 ± 0.02, while the mean chair stands completed was 8.6 ± 0.07. Being African American (β=0.496; p=0.001), higher SES status (β=0.780; p<0.001), younger (β=-0.064; p<0.001), and male (β=0.495; p=0.001), along with higher DDS scores (β=0.035; p=0.006) resulted in being able to complete more chair stands. These findings provide evidence of the importance of consuming a diet consisting of a wide variety of foods to maintain physical performance.