Patterns of food consumption and risk factors for cardiovascular disease in the general Dutch population.

BACKGROUND: Few studies have examined food consumption patterns in relation to biological risk factors for cardiovascular disease.

OBJECTIVE: The objective of the study was to describe food consumption patterns in the general Dutch population and their association with cardiovascular risk factors.

DESIGN: We performed a cross-sectional study of 19 750 randomly selected men and women aged 20-65 y from 3 Dutch municipalities. Food consumption patterns were identified with the use of factor analysis of data from a validated food-frequency questionnaire.

RESULTS: Three food consumption patterns were identified: the "cosmopolitan" pattern (greater intakes of fried vegetables, salad, rice, chicken, fish, and wine), the "traditional" pattern (greater intakes of red meat and potatoes and lesser intakes of low-fat dairy and fruit), and the "refined-foods" pattern (greater intakes of French fries, high-sugar beverages, and white bread and lesser intakes of whole-grain bread and boiled vegetables). Higher scores for the traditional pattern were associated with older age, and higher scores for the refined-foods pattern were associated with younger age, but both were associated with lower educational level, cigarette smoking, less physical activity, and higher body mass index. Independent of other lifestyle factors and body mass index, the cosmopolitan-pattern score was significantly associated with lower blood pressure and higher HDL-cholesterol concentrations, and the traditional-pattern score was associated with higher blood pressure and higher concentrations of HDL cholesterol, total cholesterol, and glucose. The refined-foods-pattern score was associated with higher total cholesterol concentrations and lower intakes of micronutrients.

CONCLUSION: In this Dutch population, food consumption patterns were independently associated with blood pressure and plasma glucose and cholesterol concentrations.