The association between muscle-to-fat ratio and cardiometabolic risks: The China National Health Survey

Huijing He; Li Pan; Dingming Wang; Feng Liu; Jianwei Du; Lize Pa; Xianghua Wang; Ze Cui; Xiaolan Ren; Hailing Wang; Xia Peng; Jingbo Zhao; Guangliang Shan

doi:10.1016/j.exger.2023.112155

The association between muscle-to-fat ratio and cardiometabolic risks: The China National Health Survey

Exp Gerontol. 2023 May:175:112155. doi: 10.1016/j.exger.2023.112155. Epub 2023 Mar 20.

Authors

Huijing He¹, Li Pan¹, Dingming Wang², Feng Liu³, Jianwei Du⁴, Lize Pa⁵, Xianghua Wang⁶, Ze Cui⁷, Xiaolan Ren⁸, Hailing Wang⁹, Xia Peng¹⁰, Jingbo Zhao¹¹, Guangliang Shan¹²

Affiliations

¹ Department of Epidemiology and Statistics, Institute of Basic Medical Sciences, Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences & School of Basic Medicine, Peking Union Medical College, Beijing, China.
² Department of Chronic and Noncommunicable Disease Prevention and Control, Guizhou Provincial Center for Disease Control and Prevention, Guiyang, China.
³ Department of Chronic and Noncommunicable Disease Prevention and Control, Shaanxi Provincial Center for Disease Control and Prevention, Xi'an, China.
⁴ Department of Chronic and Noncommunicable Disease Prevention and Control, Hainan Provincial Center for Disease Control and Prevention, Haikou, China.
⁵ Department of Chronic and Noncommunicable Disease Prevention and Control, Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region Center for Disease Control and Prevention, Urumqi, China.
⁶ Integrated Office, Institute of Biomedical Engineering, Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences, Peking Union Medical College, Tianjin, China.
⁷ Department of Chronic and Noncommunicable Disease Prevention and Control, Hebei Provincial Center for Disease Control and Prevention, Shijiazhuang, China.
⁸ Department of Chronic and Noncommunicable Disease Prevention and Control, Gansu Provincial Center for Disease Control and Prevention, Lanzhou, China.
⁹ Department of Chronic and Noncommunicable Disease Prevention and Control, Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region Center for Disease Control and Prevention, Hohhot, China.
¹⁰ Department of Chronic and Noncommunicable Disease Prevention and Control, Yunnan Provincial Center for Disease Control and Prevention, Kunming, China.
¹¹ Department of Epidemiology and Statistics, School of Public Health, Harbin Medical University, Harbin, China.
¹² Department of Epidemiology and Statistics, Institute of Basic Medical Sciences, Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences & School of Basic Medicine, Peking Union Medical College, Beijing, China. Electronic address: guangliang_shan@163.com.

PMID: 36940562
DOI: 10.1016/j.exger.2023.112155

Abstract

Background: The relationship between muscle mass and fat mass might be an indicator to assess the cardiometabolic risk independently from overweight/obesity, but evidence from a representative general Chinese population is lacking.

Objective: To understand the age- and sex-specific associations between muscle-to-fat ratio (MFR) and cardiometabolic risks in Chinese population.

Methods: 31,178 (12,526 men and 18,652 women) subjects from the China National Health Survey were included. Muscle mass and fat mass were assessed by a bioelectrical impedance device. MFR was calculated as muscle mass divided by fat mass. Systolic blood pressure (SBP) and diastolic blood pressure (DBP), serum lipids, fasting plasma glucose and serum uric acid were measured. General linear regressions, quantile regressions and restricted cubic-spline (RCS) regressions were applied to assess the effect of MFR on cardiometabolic profiles.

Results: Per unit increase of MFR was associated with a 0.631 (0.759-0.502) mmHg SBP decrease in men, 2.648 (3.073-2.223) in women; 0.480 (0.568-0.392) mmHg DBP decrease in men, 2.049 (2.325-1.774) in women; a 0.054 (0.062-0.046) mmol/L total cholesterol decrease in men, 0.147 (0.172-0.122) in women; 0.084 (0.098-0.070) mmol/L triglycerides decrease in men, 0.225 (0.256-0.194) in women; a 0.045 (0.054-0.037) mmol/L low-density lipoprotein decrease in men, 0.183 (0.209-0.157) in women; a 2.870 (2.235-3.506) μmol/L serum uric acid decrease in men, 13.352 (14.967-11.737) in women; and a 0.027 (0.020-0.033) mmol/L high-density lipoprotein increase in men, 0.112 (0.098-0.126) mmol/L in women. The effect in overweight/obese people was much significant than in under/normal weight counterparts. The RCS curves revealed both linear and non-linear relationships between increased MFR and lower cardiometabolic risk.

Conclusions: Muscle-to-fat ratio is independently associated with multiple cardiometabolic parameters among Chinese adults. Higher MFR is related with better cardiometabolic health, and the effect is much significant in overweight/obese people and women.

Keywords: Ageing; Muscle-to-fat ratio, cardiometabolic risk; Overweight and obesity.

Publication types

Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

Body Mass Index
Cardiovascular Diseases* / epidemiology
Cardiovascular Diseases* / etiology
Female
Health Surveys
Humans
Male
Muscles
Obesity
Overweight*
Risk Factors
Uric Acid

Substances

Uric Acid