Dietary BCAA Intake Is Associated with Demographic, Socioeconomic and Lifestyle Factors in Residents of São Paulo, Brazil

• Published in: Nutrients Vol. 9; no. 5; p. 449
• Main Authors: Pallottini, Ana Carolina, Sales, Cristiane Hermes, Vieira, Diva Aliete Dos Santos, Marchioni, Dirce Maria, Fisberg, Regina Mara
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Switzerland MDPI AG 02-05-2017; MDPI
• Subjects: Adolescent; Adolescents; Adult; Adults; Aged; Aged, 80 and over; Amino Acids, Branched-Chain - administration & dosage; Animals; Beans; Body Mass Index; Brazil; Bread; Chain branching; Chains; Child; Cross-Sectional Studies; Demographics; Diet; Dietary intake; epidemiology survey; Fabaceae; Female; Food; Food consumption; Health; Humans; Life Style; Lifestyles; Linear Models; Male; Meat; Mental Recall; Middle Aged; Nutrition Assessment; Nutrition Surveys; nutritional assessment; Older people; Oryza; Poultry; protein; Red Meat; Rice; Risk; Risk groups; Socioeconomic Factors; Teenagers; Young Adult; epidemiology survey; nutritional assessment; diet; protein
• ISSN: 2072-6643; 2072-6643
• DOI: 10.3390/nu9050449

Identifying which risk groups have a higher intake of branched chain amino acids (BCAA) is important for the planning of public policies. This study was undertaken to investigate BCAA consumption, the foods contributing to that consumption and their association with demographic, socioeconomic and lifestyle factors.
Data from the Health Survey of São Paulo, a cross-sectional population-based survey (
= 1662; age range 12-97 years), were used. Dietary intake was measured using 24-h dietary recalls. Baseline characteristics were collected. Associations between BCAA intake and demographic, socioeconomic and lifestyle factors were determined using linear regression.
Total BCAA intake was 217.14 mg/kg·day (Leu: 97.16 mg/kg·day; Ile: 56.44 mg/kg·day; Val: 63.54 mg/kg·day). BCAA intake was negatively associated with female sex in adolescents and adult groups, with no white race in adolescents, and with former smoker status in adults. Conversely, BCAA was positively associated with household per capita income in adolescents and adults. No associations were observed in the older adults group. Main food contributors to BCAA were unprocessed red meat, unprocessed poultry, bread and toast, beans and rice.
Adolescents and adults were the most vulnerable to having their BCCA intake influenced by demographic, socioeconomic and lifestyle factors.