The association between dietary sodium intake and adiposity, inflammation, and hormone markers: A preliminary study / 한국영양학회지

ABSTRACT

PURPOSE: Excess intake of sodium is a major diet-related risk factor for human diseases including hypertension and cancer as well as obesity and inflammation. However, findings are still controversial, and evidence is lacking in Koreans. Therefore, for better understanding of the role of dietary sodium intake in disease etiology, this study investigated the effects of dietary sodium intake on adiposity, inflammation, and hormones in Koreans. METHODS: A total of 80 males and females joined the study. The general characteristics and dietary intake data were investigated by trained interviewers using a questionnaire and 24-h dietary recall, respectively. For the markers of adiposity, body weight, body mass index, percent of body fat, visceral fat area, and waist and hip circumference were measured. For the inflammation and hormone markers, leptin, adiponectin, insulin, tumor necrosis factor-α, and interleukin-6 were also analyzed. RESULTS: Multivariate linear regression analyses suggested that dietary sodium intake was not associated with adiposity. However, dietary sodium showed a significant association with insulin level Plasma insulin concentration increased with sodium intake independent of other dietary intake or percent of body fat (β = 0.296, adjusted r² = 0.276, p < 0.01). Other markers for inflammation and hormonal responses were not associated with dietary sodium intake. CONCLUSION: Findings suggested that dietary sodium intake may be a critical modifying factor in the level of plasma insulin. However, it showed a limited effect on obesity and other inflammation markers and hormone levels. These findings should be confirmed in larger, well-designed investigations.