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Association between frequency of snacking and all‐cause mortality among community‐dwelling young‐old adults: An age‐specific prospective cohort study
Author(s) -
Kobayashi Tohru,
Zhao Wenjing,
Ukawa Shigekazu,
Wakai Kenji,
Tsushita Kazuyo,
Kawamura Takashi,
Ando Masahiko,
Tamakoshi Akiko
Publication year - 2021
Publication title -
geriatrics and gerontology international
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.823
H-Index - 57
eISSN - 1447-0594
pISSN - 1444-1586
DOI - 10.1111/ggi.14209
Subject(s) - snacking , medicine , hazard ratio , demography , confounding , confidence interval , cohort study , proportional hazards model , cohort , population , gerontology , environmental health , obesity , sociology
Aim We aimed to clarify whether snacking habits decrease the risk of all‐cause mortality in an older Japanese population. Methods The study participants were 64‐ or 65‐year‐old community‐dwelling residents recruited each survey year from 1996 through 2005. Data on the frequency of snacking and other lifestyle factors were obtained during the baseline survey using self‐administered questionnaires, and the participants were followed up annually until the end of 2017. In total, 2943 participants (1484 men and 1459 women) were eligible. All‐cause mortality was compared among participants grouped by frequency of snacking (no snacking, one to four times/week, or every day). Results The number of deaths recorded over the study period of 43 204 person‐years was 357 (24.1%) for men and 173 (11.9%) for women. The mean ± standard deviations for the follow‐up period were 14.2 ± 4.9 years in men and 15.2 ± 4.5 years in women. Cox proportional hazard regression analyses showed that after adjusting for potential confounding factors, the hazard ratios for women were 0.64 (95% confidence interval [CI], 0.43–0.94) in the group that had a habit of snacking one to four times/week, and 0.93 (95% CI 0.63–1.36) in the group that had a habit of snacking every day compared with those in the no snacking group. These associations were not observed among men. Conclusions A moderate frequency of snacking slightly decreases the risk of all‐cause mortality among women. Our findings might be useful for improving the nutrition statuses in older female adults. Geriatr Gerontol Int 2021; 21: 697–704 .