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Epidemiology

Trends in dietary fiber intake in Chinese aged 45 years and above, 1991–2011

European Journal of Clinical Nutrition volume 68, pages 619–622 (2014)Cite this article

Subjects

Abstract

Background/Objectives:

To analyze the time trends in total dietary fiber (DF) intake, DF food sources and total DF intake per 1000 kcal (DF density) in Chinese adults aged 45 years and above in the past 20 years.

Subjects/Methods:

We used the data from the China Health and Nutrition Survey (CHNS) collected in 1991, 1993, 1997, 2000, 2004, 2006, 2009 and 2011. Adults who were aged 45 years and above were included in each round. Water-insoluble DF intake was calculated by substituting the water-insoluble DF content of each food in the Chinese Food Composition Table (FCT) for food intake. Total DF was calculated according to the convert index, which indicates the ratio between total DF and water-insoluble DF for each food group.

Results:

The mean daily total DF intake in males was 19.5 g/day in 1991 and 19.4 g/day in 2011. In females, it was 17.5 g/day in 1991 and 17.6 g/day in 2011. DF density increased in both males and females from 2004 to 2011. It was 9.0 g/1000 kcal in males and 9.5 g/1000 kcal in females in 2011. The major food sources of water-insoluble DF were cereals and vegetables. Communities with different levels of urbanization showed different trends in total DF intake: decreased consumption (2.9 g) in residents of low-urbanization communites and increased consumption (3.1 g) in those of high-urbanization communities.

Conclusion:

The average total DF intake in Chinese adults aged 45 years and above remained at a stable level. DF density increased because of slight decrease in energy intake. More public health messages should be disseminated, especially to the residents of low-urbanization communities, so as to increase their daily DF intake to a level close to the recommended DF intake.

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Acknowledgements

This research uses data from the China Health and Nutrition Survey (CHNS). We thank the National Institute for Nutrition and Food Safety, China Center for Disease Control and Prevention, Carolina Population Center (5 R24 HD050924), the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, the NIH (R01-HD30880, DK056350, R24 HD050924, and R01-HD38700) and the Fogarty International Center, NIH, for providing financial support for the CHNS data collection and analysis of files from 1989 to 2011 and future surveys.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. National Institute for Nutrition and Food Safety, Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention, Institute for Nutrition and Food Safety, Beijing, China

    H J Wang, Z H Wang, J G Zhang, W W Du, C Su, J Zhang & B Zhang

  2. Chinese Nutrition Society, Beijing, China

    F Y Zhai

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  1. H J Wang
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  2. Z H Wang
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Correspondence to B Zhang.

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Wang, H., Wang, Z., Zhang, J. et al. Trends in dietary fiber intake in Chinese aged 45 years and above, 1991–2011. Eur J Clin Nutr 68, 619–622 (2014). https://doi.org/10.1038/ejcn.2014.24

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