Associations of major dietary patterns with cardiometabolic risk factors among Iranian patients with type 1 diabetes.

Objective: To examine the associations between dietary patterns and cardiometabolic risk factors among type 1 diabetic (T1D) patients.

Methods: This cross-sectional study was conducted on 229 Iranian T1D patients. Data on dietary intakes were collected using a 168-item food frequency questionnaire. To identify major dietary patterns, we merged data on the 168 food items to obtain 23 food groups. Then, we constructed major dietary patterns using factor analysis with varimax rotation. We used binary logistic regression to assess the association between dietary patterns and cardiometabolic risk factors, in which potential confounders were adjusted.

Results: Four dietary patterns were identified: Western, unhealthy, traditional, and semi-healthy patterns. After adjusting for confounders including demographic variables, physical activity, energy intake, and medical history, participants in the highest tertile of the Western dietary pattern had 2.53 (95 % CI: 1.03-6.22) and 3.37 (95 % CI: 1.18-9.63) times more odds of elevated HbA1c and low estimated glucose disposal rate (eGDR), respectively, compared with those in the lowest tertile. Such the positive association was also seen for elevated fasting blood glucose (FBG). Moreover, individuals in the top tertile of unhealthy diet had more odds of elevated LDL-c and abdominal obesity than those in the lowest tertile. Regarding the semi-healthy diet, higher adherence was associated with 51 % lower odds of elevated FBG (OR: 0.49, 95 % CI: 0.24-0.99). For other outcomes, no significant association was found.

Conclusion: We found that T1D patients may take benefit from adherence to a semi-healthy diet with a low amount of unhealthy and Western-related foods.