The dietary inflammatory index is associated with anti- and pro-inflammatory adipokines in Brazilian schoolchildren

Purpose: To investigate the relationship of Children’s Dietary Inflammatory Index (C-DII™) scores with body fat distribution and serum adipokines in Brazilian schoolchildren. Methods: This population-based cross-sectional study enrolled 378 schoolchildren aged 8 and 9 years from Viçosa, Minas Gerais, Brazil. Food consumption was assessed using three 24-h dietary recalls from which C-DII scores were calculated. Serum adipokines [adiponectin, leptin, retinal-binding protein 4 (RBP4), and chemerin] were analyzed in blood samples. Sociodemographic characteristics and sedentary behavior were assessed using a semi-structured questionnaire. Total, truncal, android and gynoid body fat were evaluated by dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry (DXA). We compared the distributions of adiposity measures and serum adipokines by C-DII categories with linear regression, adjusting for potential confounders. Results: The mean sample C-DII was 0.59 ± 0.94 and ranged from − 2.16 to + 2.75. The C-DII was not associated with central and total body fat. However, the C-DII was modestly inversely associated with adiponectin and RBP4, and modestly directly associated with chemerin. These results remained significant after adjusting for body fat. Every 1 SD of C-DII was related, respectively, to a − 0.8 (− 1.5, − 0.03) and to a − 0.1 (− 0.2, − 0.05) units lower mean of adiponectin and RBP4, and to 7.2 (0.3, 14.1) units higher of chemerin. Conclusion: Higher C-DII score was modestly inversely and directly associated with anti- and pro-inflammatory adipokines, respectively, in Brazilian children. The development of public health policies is needed to promote healthy eating habits during childhood to prevent the early onset of systemic inflammation and ill health effects later in life.