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Assessing the diet quality of individuals with rheumatic conditions: a cross-sectional study

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Abstract

Arthritis is a significant cause of chronic pain and disability, affecting around 3.5 million Australians. However, little is known regarding the overall diet quality of those living with arthritis. This study aimed to assess the dietary quality of Australians living in the Australian Capital Territory region with arthritis. This cross-sectional study analysed dietary intake data of individuals living with arthritis using a validated food frequency questionnaire. Dietary quality was assessed using the Healthy Eating Index-2015 (HEI-2015) to examine associations between diet composition, age, income and arthritis impact using the short form of the Arthritis Impact Measurement Scales 2 (AIMS2-SF). Participants, predominantly female (82.6%), were grouped by age: 18–50 years (n = 32), 50–64 years (n = 31), and 65 + years (n = 23). Significant correlations were observed between age and HEI-2015 (rs = 0.337, p = 0.002) and income and AIMS2-SF (rs = − 0.353, p < 0.001). The mean HEI-2015 score for the 18–49 years group was fair (72.1 ± 12.3), lower than both the 50–64 years group score of good (81.5 ± 9.72) (p = 0.004), and the 65 + years group score of good (81.8 ± 12.1) (p = 0.007). Dietary fibre, seafood and plant protein, fatty acids, and refined grains were identified as dietary components of concern for the 18–49 years group, and total fruit and added sugar were components of concern for people in the worst tertile for the AIMS2-SF. People aged between 18 and 49 years are consuming a lower quality diet compared to people aged 50 years and over. Further research is needed to understand why this association is occurring in this high socioeconomic region of Australia (a high-income country).

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Acknowledgements

The authors would like to thank the members of Arthritis Australia Australian Capital Territory for their participation and time commitment, and Michael Farr for his assistance with recruitment. The authors would also like to thank Dr. Jackson Thomas for his assistance in achieving the funding for this project, Ms Maddy Hunter, and Dr Rati Jani for her advice on the statistical analysis. We would also like to acknowledge and thank Kalijah Madsen-Guarini, Stephanie Feltham, and Taylor Rourke for their assistance with data collection.

Funding

This study was funded by Arthritis Australia Australian Capital Territory and registered with the University of Canberra Research and Innovation Office. The research grant was awarded to authors Andrew J. McKune, Stephen Isbel, Nenad Naumovski, Ekavi N. Georgousopoulou, and Duane D. Mellor.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Faculty of Health, University of Canberra, University Drive, Po Box 5018, Bruce, ACT, 2617, Australia

    Thomas Carter, Nathan M. D’Cunha, Stephen Isbel, Duane D. Mellor, Jane Kellett, Andrew J. McKune & Nenad Naumovski

  2. Australian National University Medical School, Australian National University, Canberra, ACT, Australia

    Ekavi N. Georgousopoulou

  3. School of Medicine, The University of Notre Dame, Sydney, NSW, Australia

    Ekavi N. Georgousopoulou

  4. Centre for Health and Medical Research, ACT Health Directorate, Canberra, ACT, Australia

    Ekavi N. Georgousopoulou

  5. Arthritis ACT, Building 18, 170 Haydon Drive, Bruce, Canberra, ACT, Australia

    Rebecca Davey

  6. Aston Medical School, Aston University, Birmingham, UK

    Duane D. Mellor

  7. Faculty of Health, Research Institute for Sport and Exercise, University of Canberra, Bruce, ACT, Australia

    Andrew J. McKune

  8. Discipline of Biokinetics, Exercise and Leisure Sciences, School of Health Sciences, University of KwaZulu-Natal, Durban, KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa

    Andrew J. McKune

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  1. Thomas Carter
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Contributions

The study was conceptualised by ENG, SI, RD, DDM, JK, AJM, and NN. Data collection was performed by NMD, ENG, SI, AJM, and NN. The manuscript was drafted by TC and NMD. All authors edited the paper, provided critical feedback, and reviewed the final version prior to submission.

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Correspondence to Nenad Naumovski.

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All authors declare that they have no conflict of interest.

Ethical approval

This project was approved by the Human Research Ethics Committee of the University of Canberra (HREC—17-77) and was carried out in accordance with the Declaration of Helsinki (1989) of the World Medical Association.

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Participants were informed of the study aims and procedures and provided written informed consent for study participation prior to enrolment.

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Carter, T., D’Cunha, N.M., Georgousopoulou, E.N. et al. Assessing the diet quality of individuals with rheumatic conditions: a cross-sectional study. Rheumatol Int 40, 1439–1448 (2020). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00296-020-04527-2

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