Serum gamma-glutamyltransferase is inversely associated with dietary total and coffee-derived polyphenol intakes in apparently healthy Japanese men.

Purpose: Serum γ-glutamyltransferase (GGT) has been proposed as a marker of oxidative stress. Here, we examined the association between serum GGT and the dietary intake of polyphenols, which have antioxidant properties.

Methods: A cross-sectional survey including 7960 apparently healthy Japanese men (aged 22-86 years) who participated in health checkups was conducted in Shizuoka, Japan.

Impact of Interactions Between Self-Reported Psychological Stress and Habitual Exercise on the Dietary Intake of Japanese Men and Women: a Large-Scale Cross-Sectional Study.

Background: Modifying lifestyle factors such as diet and exercise can reduce the risk of cancer. Psychological stress (PS) might be indirectly associated with cancer because it alters lifestyle factors. However, the relationship among these variables has not been fully investigated.

Positive linear dose-response relationships, but no J-shaped relationship, between drinking habits and estimated glomerular filtration rate in middle-aged Japanese men.

The relationship between drinking frequency and amount of alcohol consumption (i.e., drinking habits) and the risk of chronic kidney disease (CKD) remains unclear.

Serum Fatty Acid Binding Protein 4 Concentrations Are Positively and Independently Associated with Blood Pressure and Abdominal Fat among Parameters in Health Check-Ups in Ordinary Middle-Aged Japanese Males.

We wished to examine potential associations among blood concentrations of fatty acid-binding protein (FABP) 4 and parameters in health check-ups such as abdominal fat area (AFA) and blood pressure (BP) in middle-aged Japanese males. We conducted a cross-sectional study of males who participated in health check-ups in Japan. We excluded participants diagnosed with metabolic diseases by the time of their check-up.

Association between Smoking Status and Food and Nutrient Consumption in Japanese: a Large-Scale Cross-Sectional Study.

Background: In Japan, in comparison with the rest of the world the death rate of lung cancer is low although the smoking rate is relatively high. This is the so-called "Japanese smoking paradox". A healthy diet is proposed to attenuate the risk without quitting smoking.

Plasma TNF-α Is Associated with Inflammation and Nutrition Status in Community-Dwelling Japanese Elderly.

Inflammation has been suggested to play an important role in age-related chronic diseases and disability, and it is associated with nutritional status including obesity and malnutrition. While numerous studies have examined the validity of inflammatory markers in the population studies in Caucasian elderly people, very little information is available for the factors affecting inflammatory markers in Asian elderly people. Among inflammatory markers frequently used for the studies of aging, tumor necrosis factor α (TNF-α) is produced mainly by macrophages, and contributes to production of interleukin-6 (IL-6) and C-reactive protein (CRP), thus directing a chronic inflammatory process in the body.

Interactions between psychological stress and drinking status in relation to diet among middle-aged men and women: a large-scale cross-sectional study in Japan.

The aim of this study was to investigate the interaction between psychological stress (PS) and drinking status in relation to diet among middle-aged Japanese men and women in a large-scale cross-sectional study. The study population included 5,587 middle-aged Japanese men and 2,718 middle-aged Japanese women who underwent annual health checkups. The subjects were divided into 2 groups (non-drinkers and drinkers) and classified as having low, moderate, or high self-reported PS levels.

Plasma sE-selectin level is positively correlated with neutrophil count and diastolic blood pressure in Japanese men.

Increased levels of circulating soluble type of E-selectin (sE-selectin), neutrophil counts and blood pressure are associated with the development of cardiovascular diseases (CVD). In this study, we conducted a cross-sectional study of men who participated in health check-ups, and selected those who were not diagnosed with or being treated for metabolic diseases such as diabetes, hypertension and lipid abnormality according to the health check-ups. We measured their basic clinical parameters including blood pressure and neutrophil count, plasma sE-selectin concentration and lifestyle factors, and assessed their interrelations by multivariate linear regression (MLR) analysis.

Self-reported faster eating is positively associated with accumulation of visceral fat in middle-aged apparently healthy Japanese men.

Purpose: Faster eating is positively associated with body mass index in apparently healthy Japanese populations. In the present study, we examined the associations between self-reported rate of eating and visceral and subcutaneous fat areas in apparently healthy middle-aged Japanese men.

Methods: We conducted a cross-sectional study of men who participated in health checkups in Japan.

Associations between leukocyte counts and cardiovascular disease risk factors in apparently healthy Japanese men.

Increased leukocyte counts, particularly white blood cell and neutrophil counts, are reportedly associated with increased incidence of cardiovascular diseases (CVD) and mortality in subjects with acute and moderate coronary diseases. However, few reports have determined the associations between leukocyte subset (i.e.

Self-reported rate of eating is associated with higher circulating ALT activity in middle-aged apparently healthy Japanese men.

Purpose: Elevated circulating activities of alanine aminotransferase (ALT), a marker for liver injury, and the lifestyle of a higher rate of eating in healthy and preclinical subjects are associated with increased risk of obesity and diabetes. In this study, we examined the associations between self-reported rate of eating and circulating ALT activity in middle-aged apparently healthy Japanese men.

Methods: We conducted a cross-sectional study of 3,929 apparently healthy men aged 40-59 years (mean ± SD age, 49.