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ORIGINAL RESEARCH article

Front. Nutr.
Sec. Nutritional Epidemiology
Volume 11 - 2024 | doi: 10.3389/fnut.2024.1521707
This article is part of the Research Topic Dietary Habits in Liver Health and Disease: Preclinical and Clinical Studies View all 5 articles

Nonlinear relationship between the first meal time of the day and gallstone incidence in American adults: A population-based cross-sectional study

Provisionally accepted
Tiange Sun Tiange Sun 1*Lidong Zhang Lidong Zhang 1*Ying Lu Ying Lu 1*Xianwen Zhang Xianwen Zhang 1*Jinhao Cui Jinhao Cui 1*Tongheng Yang Tongheng Yang 1*Dan Zhang Dan Zhang 1*Bowen Zheng Bowen Zheng 2*Shuguo Zheng Shuguo Zheng 2*
  • 1 The 78th Group Military Hospital of the People’s Liberation Army, Mudanjiang, China
  • 2 Southwest Hospital, Army Medical University, Chongqing, China

The final, formatted version of the article will be published soon.

    Background Irregular meal time is associated with gallstones. The time‒dose effect between meal time and gallstone formation remains unknown. Objective This study aimed to investigate the association between the first meal time (FMT) of the day and the prevalence of gallstones. Methods Based on data from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey from 2017 to March 2020, the associations between the FMT of the day and the prevalence of gallstones were analyzed via multivariable logistic regression, restricted cubic spline curves, subgroup analysis, and interaction tests. Results A total of 6,547 participants were included. The fully adjusted model indicated a positive correlation between the FMT of the day and the prevalence of gallstones (odds ratio [OR]=1.05, 95% confidence interval [CI]=1.02~1.08); this association was consistent across subgroups. The risk of developing gallstones was the greatest when the FMT was between 09:00 and 14:00 (OR [95% CI]=1.49 [1.24~1.77]). There was a nonlinear relationship between the FMT and gallstone incidence (P for nonlinearity=0.042), with an inflection point at 13.4 hours. After the 13.4-hour mark, the risk of developing gallstones did not increase further. Conclusions The FMT of the day is positively correlated with the prevalence of gallstones, and there is a nonlinear relationship and threshold effect between the two. Skipping breakfast is associated with a greater risk of developing gallstones. This study provides new evidence for the dietary prevention of gallstones.

    Keywords: First meal time, gallstone, American adults, NHANES, Nonlinear relationship, threshold effect, dietary

    Received: 02 Nov 2024; Accepted: 03 Dec 2024.

    Copyright: © 2024 Sun, Zhang, Lu, Zhang, Cui, Yang, Zhang, Zheng and Zheng. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) or licensor are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.

    * Correspondence:
    Tiange Sun, The 78th Group Military Hospital of the People’s Liberation Army, Mudanjiang, China
    Lidong Zhang, The 78th Group Military Hospital of the People’s Liberation Army, Mudanjiang, China
    Ying Lu, The 78th Group Military Hospital of the People’s Liberation Army, Mudanjiang, China
    Xianwen Zhang, The 78th Group Military Hospital of the People’s Liberation Army, Mudanjiang, China
    Jinhao Cui, The 78th Group Military Hospital of the People’s Liberation Army, Mudanjiang, China
    Tongheng Yang, The 78th Group Military Hospital of the People’s Liberation Army, Mudanjiang, China
    Dan Zhang, The 78th Group Military Hospital of the People’s Liberation Army, Mudanjiang, China
    Bowen Zheng, Southwest Hospital, Army Medical University, Chongqing, 400038, China
    Shuguo Zheng, Southwest Hospital, Army Medical University, Chongqing, 400038, China

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