Does Eating-Away-from-Home Increase the Risk of a Metabolic Syndrome Diagnosis?

Abstract

Rising frequency of eating-away-from-home (EAFH) is suspected to be correlated with several non-communicable diseases. This study adopted the Chinese Health and Nutrition Survey (CHNS) 2009 data to investigate the association between being diagnosed with the metabolic syndrome (MetS) and EAFH at different ages. Results showed that the association between EAFH and MetS varied at different ages and differed for males and females. EAFH was positively associated with a higher risk of getting MetS for males, especially for those aged between 45 and 60; while it was negatively associated with the risk of getting MetS for young females (<45) (all p < 0.05). In particular, EAFH was associated with a lower risk of getting high serum triglycerides (TGs), abdominal adiposity, elevated blood pressure, and impaired fasting blood glucose for young females, while higher risk of high serum TGs, abdominal adiposity, elevated blood pressure, and impaired fasting blood glucose for middle-aged males (all p < 0.05). In addition, a higher frequency of EAFH was associated with a higher risk of abdominal adiposity and elevated blood pressure for older women, and a lower risk of elevated blood pressure, and impaired fasting blood glucose for younger men (all p < 0.05). Our study implies that heterogeneous target strategies for preventing MetS in different subpopulation should be considered.

The Relationship Between Sugar-Sweetened Beverages, Takeaway Dietary Pattern, and Psychological and Behavioral Problems Among Children and Adolescents in China

“…Previous studies have also shown that the proportion of food spending on eating out of home in Chinese cities rose from 7.9% in 1992 to 21.2% in 2010 (23), which is consistent with a longitudinal study with data collected from the China Health and Nutrition Survey, which found that eating away from home became more common (24). The tempo of life is becoming faster, more and more people also will chose convenient lifestyles, and one of the most obvious characteristics of fast foods and takeaway foods is comfort, which means they save extra time greatly (25,26).…”

Eating out of Home: Influence on Nutrition, Health, and Policies: A Scoping Review

“…Among the 57 studies, 4 considered the term restaurant exclusively in its definition [ 4 , 7 , 8 , 9 ], while 14 articles had the term restaurant attached to others (FF, takeaway (TA), cafeteria, etc.) in the definition of EOH [ 15 , 19 , 20 , 27 , 31 , 34 , 35 , 36 , 37 , 38 , 39 , 40 , 41 , 42 ]. The high heterogeneity was confirmed in a previous systematic review published recently by Wellard-Cole et al [ 56 ].…”

“…Moreover, restaurant and FF were the terms most commonly used together by authors to define EOH, appearing in most of the articles of this review [ 4 , 5 , 7 , 8 , 9 , 15 , 16 , 17 , 18 , 19 , 20 , 21 , 22 , 23 , 24 , 26 , 27 , 29 , 31 , 32 , 33 , 34 , 35 , 36 , 37 , 38 , 39 , 40 , 42 , 57 ]. Other terminologies used to define EOH were chain restaurant, à la carte, sit-down restaurant, eating at a table, full service, ready to eat, TA, buffet and buffet by weight, bar, cafes, and cafeterias, either alone attached to at least one of the above.…”

“…Buffet [ 26 , 47 ] and buffet by weight [ 43 ] were two types of restaurants also considered by some authors. Cafeterias and bars belonged to the same group in several articles [ 15 , 16 , 22 , 27 ], while in eight of them, these terms were added to the definition, along with others, such as restaurant and FF [ 26 , 33 , 35 , 36 , 39 , 40 , 42 , 43 ].…”

“…There is also observed the impact of EOH on the prevalence of metabolic syndrome, overweight, and obesity. In this regard, EOH increased the risk of metabolic syndrome for middle-aged males (45–60 years) and higher abdominal adiposity and blood pressure for older women, while for both younger men and women (<45 years), the risk of elevated blood pressure decreased [ 40 ]. Choi et al, observed that the waist-to-hip ratio, serum total cholesterol [ 67 ], and cholesterol transported by low-density lipoproteins were significantly higher among participants who rarely dined out of home than those who did not [ 4 ].…”