Relationship between dietary quality and metabolically healthy profile among overweight/obese cameroonian adults: A cross-sectional study

Problem considered

In Cameroon, where food quality indices are widely used to assess cardiometabolic risk, it is necessary to clarify the link between diet quality and metabolically healthy profile in overweight and obese adults.

Methods

The study included 324 overweight/obese Cameroonian adults aged 21–65 years. Food quality was assessed using Food Consumption Scores (FCS) and Dietary Diversity Scores (DDS) derived from the different food groups consumed. Anthropometric and clinical measurements were performed. A metabolically unhealthy profile was defined by the presence of at least one disorder (hypertension, hypertriglyceridemia, hypercholesterolemia or hyperglycemia), while the complete absence of these disorders defined the metabolically healthy profile. Bivariate logistic regression analyses were used to estimate odds ratios (OR) with 95 % confidence intervals (CI).

Results

The proportion of participants with unacceptable FCS was higher in the metabolically healthy group than in the metabolically unhealthy group (44.8 % vs. 27.2 %). The main contributors to dietary diversity in metabolically healthy overweight/obese individuals were vitamin A-rich foods (13.45 % vs 12.06 %), pulses (16.01 % vs 13.13 %), and fruits and vegetables (13.45 % vs 11.33 %), compared to their unhealthy counterparts. Logistic regression indicated that unacceptable FCS (OR = 0.46; 95 % CI: 0.28–0.75) was paradoxically associated with a higher probability of having a metabolically healthy profile. In contrast, DDS was not significantly associated with metabolic health in this overweight/obese population.

Conclusion

These results highlight the need for personalized nutritional strategies specific to the Cameroonian context to improve the prevention and management of cardiometabolic risk in overweight and obese individuals.