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Carbohydrates, glycemic index and diabetes mellitus

Isotopic estimates of sugar intake are related to chronic disease risk factors but not obesity in an Alaska native (Yup’ik) study population

European Journal of Clinical Nutrition volume 68, pages 91–96 (2014)Cite this article

Subjects

Abstract

Background/Objectives:

Sugar intake may be causally associated with chronic disease risk, either directly or by contributing to obesity. However, evidence from observational studies is mixed, in part due to the error and bias inherent in self-reported measures of sugar intake. Objective biomarkers may clarify the relationship between sugar intake and chronic disease risk. We have recently validated a biomarker of sugar intake in an Alaska Native (Yup’ik) study population that incorporates red blood cell carbon and nitrogen isotope ratios in a predictive model. This study tested associations of isotopic estimates of sugar intake with body mass index (BMI), waist circumference (WC) and a broad array of other physiological and biochemical measures of chronic disease risk in Yup’ik people.

Subjects/Methods:

In a cross-sectional sample of 1076 Yup’ik people, multiple linear regression was used to examine associations of sugar intake with BMI, WC and other chronic disease risk factors.

Results:

Isotopic estimates of sugar intake were not associated with BMI (P=0.50) or WC (P=0.85). They were positively associated with blood pressure, triglycerides (TG) and leptin, and are inversely associated with total-, high-density lipoprotein- and low-density lipoprotein-cholesterol and adiponectin.

Conclusions:

Isotopic estimates of sugar intake were not associated with obesity, but were adversely associated with other chronic disease risk factors in this Yup’ik study population. This first use of stable isotope markers of sugar intake may influence recommendations for sugar intake by Yup’ik people; however, longitudinal studies are required to understand associations with chronic disease incidence.

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Acknowledgements

We thank our tribal partners in the Yukon–Kuskokwim Delta for their involvement in and contributions to this study. We thank Eliza Orr, Jynene Black, Maria Bray and Renee Pasker for help with data collection and analyses. We also thank Tim Howe and Norma Haubenstock at the Alaska Stable Isotope Facility for their assistance with isotope analysis. This project is supported through the National Center for Research Resources and the National Institute of General Medical Sciences of the National Institutes of Health (NIH) through grant number P20RR016430 and NIH National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases through grant number R01DK07442. The contents of this article are solely the responsibility of the authors and do not necessarily represent the official views of the NIH.

Author contributions

DMO and BBB designed research; SEH, AB and BBB conducted research; KLS, PJH, SHN and KC performed laboratory analyses; SHN analyzed data; SHN, DMO and ARK wrote the manuscript. SHN had primary responsibility for final content. All authors contributed to the final version of the manuscript.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Center for Alaska Native Health Research, Institute of Arctic Biology, University of Alaska Fairbanks, Fairbanks, AK, USA

    S H Nash, A Bersamin, K Choy, S E Hopkins, B B Boyer & D M O'Brien

  2. Department of Biology and Wildlife, University of Alaska Fairbanks, Fairbanks, AK, USA

    S H Nash, A Bersamin & D M O'Brien

  3. Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center, Seattle, WA, USA

    A R Kristal

  4. Department of Molecular Biosciences, School of Veterinary Medicine, University of California Davis, Davis, CA, USA

    K L Stanhope & P J Havel

  5. Department of Nutrition, University of California, Davis, CA, USA

    K L Stanhope & P J Havel

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  1. S H Nash
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Nash, S., Kristal, A., Bersamin, A. et al. Isotopic estimates of sugar intake are related to chronic disease risk factors but not obesity in an Alaska native (Yup’ik) study population. Eur J Clin Nutr 68, 91–96 (2014). https://doi.org/10.1038/ejcn.2013.230

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