Higher adherence to the 'vegetable-rich' dietary pattern is related to longer telomere length in women.

BACKGROUND & AIMS: Increasing evidence suggests a role of nutrition in aging process measured by telomere length (TL). However, data from Chinese are scarce. Moreover, the potential mechanism underlying diet and aging is not clear. Although inflammation has been hypothesized as one of the main factors, direct evidence is lacking. We examined whether dietary patterns were associated with TL in Chinese adults, with particular attention paid to body fat (excessive accumulation of body fat is a state of high-systematic oxidative stress and inflammation) and C-reactive protein (CRP, a marker of inflammation).

METHODS: Principal components analysis was used to identify dietary patterns from a 66-item food frequency questionnaire. TL was measured by Southern blots-based assay (Telomere restriction fragments, TRF). Data on sociodemographic characteristics, lifestyle behaviors, anthropometry and metabolism were collected. Multivariate linear regressions were performed in 553 Chinese adults (50.8% men) aged 25-65 years.

RESULTS: Four main dietary patterns were identified. After adjustment for potential confounders, only the 'vegetable-rich' pattern characterized by higher intake of fruits, whole grains, various vegetable groups, dairy products, nuts, eggs and tea, was positively related to TL in women (β = 160.81, P for trend <0.05). The strength of this relation was almost identical with further adjustment for body fat (β = 160.50, P for trend <0.05), but was attenuated slightly with additional adjustment for CRP (β = 152.02, P for trend <0.05). No significant relations were observed in men between dietary patterns and TL.

CONCLUSIONS: Chinese women with higher adherence to 'vegetable-rich' dietary pattern have a longer TL. This relation was partially explained by CRP but not by body fat.