Plant-based diets and body composition in Chinese omnivorous children aged 6-9 years old: A cross-sectional study

Gengdong Chen; Mengyang Su; Xinwei Chu; Yuanhuan Wei; Shanshan Chen; Yingyu Zhou; Zhengping Liu; Zheqing Zhang

doi:10.3389/fnut.2022.918944

Plant-based diets and body composition in Chinese omnivorous children aged 6-9 years old: A cross-sectional study

Front Nutr. 2022 Jul 29:9:918944. doi: 10.3389/fnut.2022.918944. eCollection 2022.

Authors

Gengdong Chen¹, Mengyang Su², Xinwei Chu², Yuanhuan Wei², Shanshan Chen², Yingyu Zhou², Zhengping Liu¹, Zheqing Zhang²

Affiliations

¹ Department of Obstetrics, Foshan Institute of Fetal Medicine, Southern Medical University Affiliated Maternal & Child Health Hospital of Foshan, Foshan, China.
² Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Tropical Disease Research, Department of Nutrition and Food Hygiene, School of Public Health, Southern Medical University, Guangzhou, China.

Abstract

Evidence suggests that plant-based diets are beneficial for alleviating metabolic diseases. Childhood is a crucial period for body growth and development. However, it is unknown whether adherence to a plant-based diet is related to a healthy body composition in children. We aimed to assess the relationship between a plant-based diet and body composition in children. A total of 452 Chinese children aged 6-9 years old participated in this cross-sectional study. Lean mass (LM), fat mass, and fat mass percentage (FMP) were assessed via dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry. An age- and sex-specific abdominal FMP ≥85th percentile was defined as abdominal obesity. Handgrip strength was measured using a hydraulic hand dynamometer. A validated 79-item food frequency questionnaire was used to collect dietary information. Overall plant-based diet index (PDI), healthful plant-based diet index (hPDI), and unhealthful plant-based diet index (uPDI) scores were calculated. After adjusting for potential covariates, a higher hPDI score (per 10-score increment) was associated with a higher LM in the android area (0.038 kg, 3.2%), gynoid area (0.048 kg, 1.9%), and trunk (0.102 kg, 1.2%) and with a lower FMP (1.18%) in the android area. In contrast, a higher uPDI score (per 10-score increment) was associated with a lower LM in the trunk (0.091 kg, 1.1%) and android area (0.023 kg, 1.9%) and with a higher FMP (0.74%) in the android area. No significant associations were observed between the overall PDI and body composition or abdominal obesity. After stratifying by sex, higher (vs. lower) hPDI scores was associated with lower abdominal obesity risk in girls and higher handgrip strength in boys. In conclusion, in this cross-sectional study, we found that stronger adherence to a healthful plant-based diet, and less adherence to an unhealthful plant-based diet was associated with better body composition in Chinese omnivorous children aged 6-9 years old. Our results highlight the need to distinguish between healthy and unhealthy plant foods within investigating how to obtain a healthy body composition in children.

Keywords: abdominal obesity; body composition; children; handgrip strength; plant-based diet.