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Nutrition and Obesity Associated Health Disorders: Advances in Predictors, Diagnosis and Management

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A special issue of Nutrients (ISSN 2072-6643). This special issue belongs to the section "Nutrition and Obesity".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: 15 June 2024 | Viewed by 5990

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Special Issue Editor

Dr. Milan Piya

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Guest Editor

1. School of Medicine, Western Sydney University, Campbelltown 2751, NSW, Australia
2. Camden and Campbelltown Hospitals, South Western Sydney Local Health District, Liverpool 2560, NSW, Australia
Interests: nutrition and obesity; type 2 diabetes; weight management; bariatric surgery
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Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

As global obesity rates rise, uncovering the key predictors and interventions driving successful weight loss outcomes is imperative. This includes dietary, pharmacological, and surgical approaches, with timing and collaborative strategies essential for sustained success. The escalating prevalence of obesity-related health disorders, notably type 2 diabetes and metabolic-associated fatty liver disease (MAFLD)/non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD), presents a pressing health challenge necessitating specialised attention. Nutritional status is crucial for both weight management and addressing health complications associated with obesity, including NAFLD/MAFLD and type 2 diabetes. It is imperative to advance our comprehension of predictors for favourable weight loss outcomes, alongside recent breakthroughs in diagnostic modalities and treatment strategies. This involves exploring novel methodologies, both surgical and non-surgical, to augment and refine weight loss achievements. This Special Issue invites authors to contribute original research and comprehensive reviews focusing on the role of nutritional status in individuals facing obesity-related health disorders, as well as recent advances in diagnostic techniques and treatment options for NAFLD/MAFLD and diabetes in the context of obesity. Furthermore, we invite papers investigating predictors of successful weight loss outcomes and interventions in a collective effort to have a comprehensive understanding of obesity-associated health disorders.

Dr. Milan Piya
Guest Editor

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Nutrients is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2900 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

weight management
weight loss
obesity
nutritional status
biomarker
obesity-related health disorders
intervention

Published Papers (5 papers)

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Research

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17 pages, 1365 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Evaluation of the Diagnostic Utility of Selected Serum Adipokines and Cytokines in Subjects with MASLD—A Pilot Study

by Beata Zyśk, Lucyna Ostrowska, Joanna Smarkusz-Zarzecka, Karolina Orywal, Barbara Mroczko and Urszula Cwalina

Nutrients 2024, 16(9), 1381; https://doi.org/10.3390/nu16091381 - 2 May 2024

Viewed by 625

Abstract

Excess adipose tissue, particularly of the visceral type, triggering chronic low-grade inflammation and altering its secretory profile, is a contributing factor to the initiation and progression of metabolic dysfunction-associated steatotic liver disease (MASLD). This study aimed to compare the levels of selected adipokines and cytokines in individuals with normal weight and obesity, assessing their potential for diagnosing MASLD and establishing a cutoff point for body fat content associated with hepatic steatosis development. The research involved 99 participants categorized by body mass index and MASLD presence, undergoing body composition analysis, liver elastography, biochemical tests, and evaluation of adipokines and cytokines in serum. The results indicated elevated IL-6 (interleukin 6) serum levels in individuals with obesity with MASLD compared to the normal-weight group without MASLD. The multivariate regression analysis demonstrated a connection between hepatic steatosis and total adipose tissue content, VAT (visceral adipose tissue), VAT/SAT (subcutaneous adipose tissue) ratio, HOMA-IR (homeostasis model assessment of insulin resistance), IL-6, Il-1β (interleukin 1β), and MMP-2 (matrix metalloproteinase 2). Among the adipokines and cytokines examined in this study, interleukin 6 was the strongest predictor of MASLD regardless of gender. In addition, an association between the development of hepatic steatosis and higher serum IL-1β levels and higher adipose tissue was observed in women. However, further studies on a larger group of patients are needed to consider the use of these cytokines as markers of MASLD. The HOMA-IR index demonstrated potential diagnostic utility in identifying hepatic steatosis. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Nutrition and Obesity Associated Health Disorders: Advances in Predictors, Diagnosis and Management)

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10 pages, 855 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Relation between Body Composition Trajectories from Childhood to Adolescence and Nonalcoholic Fatty Liver Disease Risk

by Gigliola Alberti, Mariana Faune, José L. Santos, Florencia De Barbieri, Cristián García, Ana Pereira, Fernando Becerra and Juan Cristóbal Gana

Nutrients 2024, 16(6), 785; https://doi.org/10.3390/nu16060785 - 9 Mar 2024

Viewed by 869

Abstract

NAFLD has become the leading cause of chronic liver disease in children, as a direct consequence of the high prevalence of childhood obesity. This study aimed to characterize body composition trajectories from childhood to adolescence and their association with the risk of developing nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) during adolescence. The participants were part of the ‘Chilean Growth and Obesity Cohort Study’, comprising 784 children who were followed prospectively from age 3 years. Annual assessments of nutritional status and body composition were conducted, with ultrasound screening for NAFLD during adolescence revealing a 9.8% prevalence. Higher waist circumference measures were associated with NAFLD from age 3 years (p = 0.03), all skin folds from age 4 years (p < 0.01), and DXA body fat measurements from age 12 years (p = 0.01). The fat-free mass index was higher in females (p = 0.006) but not in males (p = 0.211). The second and third tertiles of the fat mass index (FMI) had odds ratios for NAFLD during adolescence of 2.19 (1.48–3.25, 95% CI) and 6.94 (4.79–10.04, 95% CI), respectively. Elevated waist circumference, skin folds, and total body fat were identified as risk factors for future NAFLD development. A higher FMI during childhood was associated with an increased risk of NAFLD during adolescence. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Nutrition and Obesity Associated Health Disorders: Advances in Predictors, Diagnosis and Management)

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14 pages, 1274 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Application and Diagnostic Performance of Two-Dimensional Shear Wave Elastography and Liver Fibrosis Scores in Adults with Class 3 Obesity

by Ritesh Chimoriya, Vincent Ho, Ziqi Vincent Wang, Ruby Chang, Badwi B. Boumelhem, David Simmons, Nic Kormas, Mark D. Gorrell and Milan K. Piya

Nutrients 2024, 16(1), 74; https://doi.org/10.3390/nu16010074 - 25 Dec 2023

Cited by 1 | Viewed by 1130

Abstract

There are no ideal non-invasive tests for assessing the severity of liver fibrosis in people with metabolic dysfunction-associated steatotic liver disease (MASLD) and class 3 obesity, where body habitus often makes imaging technically challenging. This study aimed to assess the applicability and diagnostic performance of two-dimensional shear wave elastography (2D-SWE), alongside several serum-based liver fibrosis scoring methods, in individuals with class 3 obesity. A cross-sectional study was conducted in patients aged ≥18 years and with a body mass index (BMI) ≥ 40 kg/m² who were participants in a publicly funded multidisciplinary weight management program in South Western Sydney. The 2D-SWE was performed using the ElastQ Imaging (EQI) procedure with the Phillips EPIQ Elite series ultrasound. An EQI Median value of ≥6.43 kPa was taken as a cutoff score for significant fibrosis, and the scan was considered valid when the liver EQI IQR/Med value was <30%. The Fibrosis-4 (FIB-4) index, AST-to-platelet ratio index (APRI), NAFLD fibrosis score (NFS), and circulating fibroblast activation protein index (FAP index) were calculated from fasting blood samples. The participants (n = 116; 67.2% female) were aged 47.2 ± 12.9 years, with BMI 54.5 ± 11.0 kg/m². EQI Median values were obtained for 97.4% (113/116) of the 2D-SWE scans, and 91.4% (106/116) of the scans were considered valid. The EQI Median values exhibited a moderately positive correlation with the FIB-4 index (r = 0.438; p < 0.001) and a weakly positive correlation with the APRI (r = 0.388; p < 0.001), NFS (r = 0.210; p = 0.036) and FAP index (r = 0.226; p = 0.020). All liver fibrosis scores were positively correlated with one another. Among those referred for a liver biopsy based on the 2D-SWE and serum scores, half (11/22) underwent liver biopsy, and their 2D-SWE scores exhibited 72.7% accuracy (sensitivity: 71.4%; specificity: 75%) in detecting significant fibrosis. Our results show that 2D-SWE is a feasible, non-invasive test to assess liver fibrosis among people with class 3 obesity. Further research is needed to assess how 2D-SWE can be used alongside existing serum-based risk scores to reliably detect significant fibrosis, which would potentially reduce the need for invasive liver biopsy. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Nutrition and Obesity Associated Health Disorders: Advances in Predictors, Diagnosis and Management)

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Review

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33 pages, 831 KiB

Open AccessReview

Not Only Metabolic Complications of Childhood Obesity

by Sebastian Ciężki, Emilia Odyjewska, Artur Bossowski and Barbara Głowińska-Olszewska

Nutrients 2024, 16(4), 539; https://doi.org/10.3390/nu16040539 - 15 Feb 2024

Viewed by 1393

Abstract

The increasing incidence of obesity in the pediatric population requires attention to its serious complications. It turns out that in addition to typical, well-known metabolic complications, obesity as a systemic disease carries the risk of equally serious, although less obvious, non-metabolic complications, such as cardiovascular diseases, polycystic ovary syndrome, chronic kidney disease, asthma, thyroid dysfunction, immunologic and dermatologic conditions, and mental health problems. They can affect almost all systems of the young body and also leave their mark in adulthood. In addition, obesity also contributes to the exacerbation of existing childhood diseases. As a result, children suffering from obesity may have a reduced quality of life, both physically and mentally, and their life expectancy may be shortened. It also turns out that, in the case of obese pregnant girls, the complications of obesity may also affect their unborn children. Therefore, it is extremely important to take all necessary actions to prevent the growing epidemic of obesity in the pediatric population, as well as to treat existing complications of obesity and detect them at an early stage. In summary, physicians treating a child with a systemic disease such as obesity must adopt a holistic approach to treatment. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Nutrition and Obesity Associated Health Disorders: Advances in Predictors, Diagnosis and Management)

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11 pages, 470 KiB

Open AccessReview

Obesity and Selected Allergic and Immunological Diseases—Etiopathogenesis, Course and Management

by Bartłomiej Morąg, Patrycja Kozubek and Krzysztof Gomułka

Nutrients 2023, 15(17), 3813; https://doi.org/10.3390/nu15173813 - 31 Aug 2023

Cited by 4 | Viewed by 1521

Abstract

Obesity is a global problem. It affects every age group and is associated with many negative health effects. As an example, there is a relationship between obesity and allergic and immunological diseases, such as asthma, psoriasis, food allergies, allergic rhinitis and atopic dermatitis. Obesity undeniably affects their development. In addition, it causes adverse changes in the course and response to therapy in relation to patients without excessive body weight. The treatment of diseases associated with obesity is difficult; drugs are less effective and must be used in higher doses, and their use in patients with obesity is often associated with higher risks. The main form of treatment of all obesity-related diseases is a change in eating habits and increased physical activity, which leads to a decrease in body fat mass. The positive effect of reducing BMI has been confirmed in many independent studies. This paper reviews various types of research documents published since 2019. It aims to systematize the latest knowledge and highlight the need for further research for effective and sustainable treatment options for obesity, its complications and obesity-related diseases. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Nutrition and Obesity Associated Health Disorders: Advances in Predictors, Diagnosis and Management)

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