BACKGROUND
The prevalence of cataract among the Korean older adult population is rapidly increasing. To prevent the disease at the individual level through diet control, it is important to examine which nutrients are highly associated with cataract.
OBJECTIVE
This study aimed to investigate the relationship between nutrient intake and cataract in the older adult population in Korea.
METHODS
We analyzed data from 5,634 Korean adults over the age of 60 years using the Korean National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey. We performed univariate simple and multiple logistic regressions to identify the associations between nutrient intake and cataracts. Additionally, multiple logistic regression was applied to the factor analysis results to identify the associations between sets of nutrient variables and cataracts.
RESULTS
The study sample included 2,137 individuals (764 men and 1,373 women) with cataract and 3,497 individuals (1,662 men and 1,835 women) without cataracts. The intake of polyunsaturated fatty acids, phosphorus, and vitamin B1 were statistically significant (P<0.05) in the men’s group, while that of monounsaturated fatty acids, sugar, and vitamin A were statistically significant (P<0.05) in the women’s group. A higher intake of polyunsaturated fatty acids (ORhigh_mid =1.524) and vitamin B1 (ORhigh_mid =0.605) in the men’s group and the lower intake of sugar (ORlow_mid=1.321) and vitamin A (ORlow_mid =1.364) in the women’s group were found to be associated with higher incidence of cataract. A lower intake of phosphorus (ORlow_mid=0.718) in the men’s group and higher intake of monounsaturated fatty acids (ORhigh_mid=0.611) in the women’s group were associated with lower incidence of cataract.
CONCLUSIONS
Our study demonstrated that polyunsaturated fatty acids, monounsaturated fatty acids, phosphorus, sugar, vitamin B1, and vitamin A can affect the incidence of cataracts by sex. The findings of this study could be used to control nutrient intake for cataract prevention based on sex and age.