Association between appetite-related factors and dietary diversity in middle-aged and older Japanese community dwellers

Age-related decline in appetite may lead to a decrease in dietary diversity; however, the associations of appetite and its related factors with dietary diversity remains unclear. With the aim to cross-sectionally investigate these associations in middle-aged and older Japanese community dwellers, this study included 1,287 subjects aged 49-95 years participating in the 9th wave (2018-2022) of the National Institute for Longevity Sciences-Longitudinal Study of Aging. The three appetite-related factors (appetite, hunger sensation, and meal taste) were assessed using the Japanese version of the Appetite Questionnaire (CNAQ-J). Dietary diversity score (DDS) was calculated based on the frequency of consumption of 12 food groups (range: 0-12 points). General linear models were used to examine the associations between each appetite-related factor and the DDS, both for all participants and when stratified by age (<65 years and ≥65 years). Adjustment variables included sex, age, body mass index, alcohol intake, smoking habits, exercise habits, annual household income, depressive symptoms, eating alone, medical histories, and remaining two appetite-related factors. The mean (SD) age of all subjects was 65.7 (10.4) years. The DDS in older adults (8.03 ± 1.89 points) was higher than that in the middle-aged adults (7.24 ± 1.89 points). The DDS showed a positive association with appetite and hunger sensation in all subjects. In older adults, those who reported that their meals were tasty had the highest DDS, even after adjusting for the other two appetite-related factors. While overall appetite ,intensity was positively associated with dietary diversity, the associated factors varied with age. Particularly, meal taste may have an association with dietary diversity in older adults.