Non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) is one of the most common chronic liver diseases worldwide. In Europe, about 30 percent of the population is affected. NAFLD is present when more than five percent of the liver cells have stored fat. The German Liver Foundation estimates that around 55 million U.S. and Europeans will suffer from non-alcoholic liver inflammation in 2025.
According to various studies, German professionals are particularly at risk of developing NAFLD, which is also associated with increased cardiovascular and general morbidity and mortality. Dietary behavior as well as health knowledge are important factors that have a direct influence on the disease. This topic was addressed by the Associate Professorship of Didactics in Sport and Health headed by Prof. Dr. Filip Mess in a study that ran from January 2019 to March 2022, and was funded by Siemens AG with a sum of 250,000 Euros. Results of this study have now been published in the journal "nutrients" under the title "The Connection between Non-Alcoholic Fatty-Liver Disease, Dietary Behavior, and Food Literacy in German Working Adults." The journal has an impact factor of 6.706.
The aim of the study was to analyze the direct relationship between food literacy, dietary behavior, and NAFLD using a mediation analysis. The cross-sectional study, conducted between April and December 2019, involved 372 working adults with an average age of 50.8 years. Subjects completed questionnaires on their food literacy and dietary behaviors. In addition, a physician assessed fatty liver index as an indicator of NAFLD based on an occupational health examination. Also included were subjective health status, gender, age, relationship status, educational status, type of occupation, medical history and medication use as control variables.
"In fact, we found small to moderate effects in the association between food literacy, dietary behavior and non-alcoholic fatty liver," explains Simon Blaschke, Research Associate at the Associate Professorship of Didactics in Sport and Health. "Nutrition is a key manipulated variable, so it was of course exciting to see that our hypotheses were confirmed. The better an individual's food literacy, the better their dietary behavior will ultimately be."
Based on the findings, then, food literacy on the one hand and eating behaviors on the other have important roles to play in preventing NAFLD in working individuals.
"This study in collaboration with Siemens AG is an applied and interdisciplinary project," said Prof. Mess. "In this respect, the study was quite unique, also due to its long duration. In particular, I would also like to emphasize the holistic approach through the analysis of objective and subjective health parameters."
To the publication „The Connection between Non-Alcoholic Fatty-Liver Disease, Dietary Behavior, and Food Literacy in German Working Adults“ in the journal "nutrients"
To the homepage of the Associate Professorship of Didactics in Sport and Health
Contact:
Prof. Dr. Filip Mess
Associate Professorship of Didactics in Sport and Health
Georg-Brauchle Ring 60/62
80992 München
phone: 089 289 24520
e-mail: filip.mess(at)tum.de
Simon Blaschke
Associate Professorship of Didactics in Sport and Health
Georg-Brauchle Ring 60/62
80992 München
phone: 089 289 24529
e-mail: simon.blaschke(at)tum.de
Text: Romy Schwaiger
Photos: „nutrients“/private