Consumption of red or processed meat does not predict risk factors for coronary heart disease; results from a cohort of British adults in 1989 and 1999

Objectives—To investigate whether a high consumption of red or processed meat is associated with increased risk of coronary heart disease. Subjects/Methods—The subjects were 517 men and 635 women who were members of the Medical Research Council National Survey of Health and Development, 1946 birth cohort. Assessment of diet was carried out at two time-points 1989 and 1999 with outcome measures collected in 1999. Food intake data were recorded in 5 -day diaries. Meat consumption was estimated by adding individual meat portions to the meat fractions of composite dishes. Results—There was no significant association between red or processed meat consumption in 1989 and 1999 and serum cholesterol concentrations and blood pressure measured in 1999. The combined intake of red and processed meat in 1999 had a significant positive association with blood pressure in men only. Red and processed meat intakes in 1989 separately and combined had a significant positive association with waist circumference in 1999: a 10g increase in red meat consumption accounted for a 0.3cm increase in waist circumference; p=0.04 (men), 0.05 (women). Conclusions—Consumption of red or processed meat assessed separately was not related to the major risk factors for CHD but did contribute to increased waist circumference that has also been identified as a risk factor

Development of the Eating Choices Index (ECI): a four-item index to measure healthiness of diet

Objective Current indices of diet quality generally include intakes of specific foods or nutrients. We sought to develop an index that discriminates healthy and unhealthy eating choices for use in large surveys as a short questionnaire and as a measure in existing studies with adequate dietary data. Design The Eating Choices Index (ECI) score included four components: (i) consumption of breakfast, (ii) consumption of two portions of fruit per day, (III) type of milk consumed and (iv) type of bread consumed, each providing a score from 1 to 5. In analysis of 5 d food records, the ECI score was examined in relation to macronutrients, fibre, vitamin C, Fe, Ca and folate using Pearson correlations. Variation with sex, BMI, socio-economic status, marital status, smoking status and physical activity were also investigated. Setting Medical Research Council National Survey of Health and Development. Subjects Individuals (n 2256) aged 43 years. Results The ECI score (mean 12·3 (sd 3·5)) was significantly positively associated with protein, carbohydrate, fibre, vitamin C, Fe, Ca and folate (r = 0·2-0·5; P < 0·001) and significantly negatively associated with fat intake (r = -0·2; P < 0·001); ECI scores were not correlated with total energy intake. Individuals with a lower ECI score were more likely to be men (P < 0·001), overweight or obese (P < 0·001), have lower socio-economic status (P < 0·001), smoke more (P < 0·001) and be less physically active (P < 0·001). Conclusions ECI scores correlated with nutrient profiles consistent with a healthy diet. It provides a simple method to rank diet healthiness in large observational studies