Paper
International Journal of Obesity (2004) 28, 1569–1574. doi:10.1038/sj.ijo.0802795 Published online 5 October 2004
Changes in intake of fruits and vegetables in relation to risk of obesity and weight gain among middle-aged women
K He1, F B Hu2,3,4, G A Colditz3,4, J E Manson3,4,5, W C Willett2,3,4 and S Liu3,4,5
- 1Department of Preventive Medicine, The Feinberg School of Medicine, Northwestern University, Chicago, IL, USA
- 2Department of Nutrition, Harvard School of Public Health, Boston, MA, USA
- 3Department of Epidemiology, Harvard School of Public Health, Boston, MA, USA
- 4The Channing Laboratory, Brigham and Women's Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA
- 5Division of Preventive Medicine, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA
Correspondence: Dr K He, Department of Preventive Medicine, The Feinberg School of Medicine, Northwestern University, 680 North Lake Shore Drive, Suite 1102, IL 60611-4402, Chicago, USA. E-mail: kahe@northwestern.edu
Received 4 April 2004; Revised 22 June 2004; Accepted 25 July 2004; Published online 5 October 2004.
Abstract
OBJECTIVE: To examine the changes in intake of fruits and vegetables in relation to risk of obesity and weight gain among middle-aged women.
DESIGN: Prospective cohort study with 12 y of follow-up conducted in the Nurses' Health Study.
SUBJECTS: A total of 74 063 female nurses aged 38–63 y, who were free of cardiovascular disease, cancer, and diabetes at baseline in 1984.
MEASUREMENTS: Dietary information was collected using a validated food frequency questionnaire, and body weight and height were self-reported.
RESULTS: During the 12-y follow-up, participants tended to gain weight with aging, but those with the largest increase in fruit and vegetable intake had a 24% of lower risk of becoming obese (BMI
30 kg/m2) compared with those who had the largest decrease in intake after adjustment for age, physical activity, smoking, total energy intake, and other lifestyle variables (relative risk (RR), 0.76; 95% confidence interval (CI), 0.69–0.86; P for trend <0.0001). For major weight gain (25 kg), women with the largest increase in intake of fruits and vegetables had a 28% lower risk compared to those in the other extreme group (RR, 0.72; 95% CI, 0.55–0.93; P=0.01). Similar results were observed for changes in intake of fruits and vegetables when analyzed separately.
CONCLUSIONS: Our findings suggest that increasing intake of fruits and vegetables may reduce long-term risk of obesity and weight gain among middle-aged women.
Keywords:
fruits and vegetables, weight gain, prospective study
