1. Introduction
In recent decades, there has been a significant increase in the prevalence of overweight (OW) and obesity (OB) in children and adults, in both developed and developing countries [
1]. Excess body weight increases the risk of developing various diseases, such as cardiovascular disease, type 2 diabetes, some types of cancers, musculoskeletal disorders, and neurodegenerative diseases, which have an important health and social impact [
1,
2,
3].
Diet and physical activity are the main factors that influence the development of OW and OB [
1,
4]. In this respect, several studies have shown that the intake of dietary fibre may have a positive effect on body weight control; however, the available results are inconsistent [
5,
6,
7,
8]. There are several possible mechanisms to explain the anti-obesogenic effect of dietary fibre. Among the most documented mechanisms is the one that refers to the benefits of the fibre capacity (mainly soluble fibre) to form viscous gels that delay the gastric emptying, which helps, on the one hand, to increase the satiety sensation and consequently reduces energy intake [
9] and, secondly, to control the postprandial glycaemia by delaying the intestinal absorption [
10]. Another possible mechanism is associated with short-chain fatty acid produced during fermentation of fibre in the gastrointestinal tract [
11] since it has been shown that this can contribute to regulating the secretion of some gastrointestinal hormones, such as glucagon-like peptide-1 (GLP-1), involved in satiety, and ghrelin, involved in appetite control [
12,
13], and to increase the oxidation of fatty acids and energy expenditure and to regulate glucose metabolism [
11].
In addition, there are few recent studies regarding the intake of fibre in a representative Spanish adults sample and none of these studies have analysed the relation between the fibre intake, fibre from different meals of the day and food sources and the problematic of excess body weight and abdominal obesity [
14,
15]. Additionally, it is the first Spanish study that takes into account the dietary misreporting of the participants.
Therefore, the aim of the present work was to study the intake and dietary food sources of fibre in a representative sample of the Spanish adults from the ANIBES (“Anthropometric data, macronutrients and micronutrients intake, practice of physical activity, socioeconomic data and lifestyles”) study and to analyse the differences in fibre intake between people with different body weight and with or without abdominal obesity. The present work shows the analysed data for the total sample and plausible reporters of the study.
4. Discussion
The present study provides updated information on fibre intake and dietary sources and their association with the condition of excess body weight and abdominal obesity in a representative sample of the Spanish adult population. It is highlighted the ANIBES is the first national diet and nutrition survey in Spain that has taken into account the plausible reporters in the analysis of the data, based on well-harmonised procedures [
33,
34].
A great proportion of participants of the whole sample and of the plausible reporters had OW or OB, which is in concordance with other studies performed in the Spanish population [
40,
41]. Nonetheless, it is highlighted the prevalence of OW or OB was lower in the plausible reporters in comparison with the whole sample. When comparing our results with the FANPE study (carried out in 2009 on a representative sample of the Spanish population), we found that the combined prevalence of OW and OB of the study (47.80%) was lower than that observed in our study in the whole sample (55.70%) and higher than that observed in the plausible reporters (32.80%) [
41], while the combined prevalence observed in the ENPE study, conducted in 2014–2015, also in Spain, was higher (60.9%) than that observed in the present study both in the whole sample and in the plausible reporters [
40].
Some studies have indicated that the WHtR is a better predictor of metabolic syndrome or cardiovascular disease and mortality than the WC or BMI [
21,
23]. Possibly, the most important advantage of using the WHtR resides in the fact that this ratio takes into account the height of the subject, which avoids the overestimation or underestimation of individuals who have a high or low height [
21,
23,
42]. In our study, the mean WHtR in the whole sample was 0.52 (SD 0.08) and 0.49 (SD 0.07) in the plausible reporters. These values are in line to those indicated by the FANPE and ENPE studies [
40,
43]. Using this parameter, 58.4% of the whole sample and 39.30% of the plausible reporters had abdominal obesity, lower than those indicated in the DARIOS Study (conducted in 2013 in Spanish population), in which 89% of men and 77% of women had abdominal obesity [
44]. Moreover, when the presence of excess body weight and/or the presence of abdominal obesity were examined, it was found that 63.93% of the whole sample and 42.70% of the plausible reporters had one or both of these problems.
Furthermore, we found that a high proportion of the studied population was sedentary, which has been already discussed in detail in a previous paper [
45].
The mean dietary fibre intakes (raw, adjusted by energy intake and expressed in grams per 1000 kcal per day) both in the whole sample and in the plausible reporters were very similar and were lower in comparison with the observed in other studies performed in population with similar ages and characteristics [
14,
15,
46,
47]. When comparing the results of our study with those observed by the ENIDE study (carried out in a representative sample of the Spanish population aged 18 to 64 years in 2011), the fibre intake of the participants of our study was lower than the results of such study (men: 20.94 (SD 11.38) g/day and women: 18.85 (SD 10.06) g/day) [
14]. Likewise, the mean fibre intakes shown in other study also performed in Spain 20.2 (SD 7.8) g/day and in a study carried out in Irish population 25.7 (SD 8.1) g/day were higher than that observed in our study [
15,
46]. However, our results were more similar to those observed in the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES 2009–2010) performed in United States adults aged 19 years and older where the fibre intake was 17.0 g/day [
47].
The mean intake of fibre (raw) both in men and women was below the adequate intake established by the EFSA and IOM [
29,
30] in the whole sample and in the plausible reporters. This situation was close to the results shown in various studies performing in similar population [
14,
46,
48,
49].
We observed only in the whole sample that the fibre intake after adjusting for energy intake and the fibre per 1000 kcal per day were significantly higher in women than in men. This may be explained because women are usually more concerned about following healthy eating habits and tend to include more healthy foods in their diet compared to men [
50]. The analysis of the source of daily fibre intake depending on the different meals throughout the day, revealed that nearly half came from lunch (47.46% and 42.98%) and almost a third from dinner (28.39% and 27.61%) in the whole sample and plausible reporters, respectively. It is noteworthy that the fibre from breakfast was too low in the whole sample (13.04%) and in the plausible reporters (14.27%). The number of frequency of meals per day, including snacks, has been positively related to the intake of various nutrients including the fibre intake [
51]. In our study, the mid-morning and afternoon snacks provided the 11.08% and the 15.13% of the daily fibre in the whole sample and in the plausible reporters, respectively. In contrast to our results, the 2001–2010 NHANES study observed that most of the daily fibre came from dinner (37% for adults 19–50 years) [
52]. Furthermore, the pattern of fibre intake from the different meals of the day differs according to sex. The proportion of fibre from breakfast and afternoon snacks was higher in women and from dinner in men only in the whole sample. These differences in the pattern of fibre intake are probably due to the differences in the food choices made by the subjects at each meal of the day [
52]. A better contribution of fibre from breakfast or afternoon snack, with respect to other meals, could help to reduce appetite and food intake at subsequent meals [
6,
9]. This could be related to the better situation observed in women compared to men in connection with the presence of excess body weight and abdominal obesity described in a previous paper in more detail for the ANIBES Spanish adult population [
53].
Regarding dietary sources of fibre, the main sources in the studied sample were grains, followed by vegetables, fruits, and pulses and were very similar in both studied samples. Similar food groups were identified as the major contributors in the Belgian population [
49]. Unlike our study, the main sources of fibre in the ENIDE study were fruits (30%), followed by legumes and nuts (26%), cereals (22%), and vegetables (14%) [
14]. Differences were also observed when compared to the results of the 2001–2010 NHANES study, where it was observed that the main sources were the vegetables, followed by cereals and fruits [
52].
Some studies performed on populations from the United States [
5], the Netherlands [
4], and Spain [
54] have observed an inverse association between fibre intake and BMI. In accordance with this, in our study, taking into account sex, and after adjusting for the age and physical activity of the participants, fibre intake (raw, adjusted by energy intake and expressed as grams per 1000 kcal per day) was different according to the BMI only in the whole sample. Participants with NW had a significantly higher intake of fibre (raw and expressed as grams per 1000 kcal per day) than those subjects with OW or OB. However, the differences on fibre intake adjusted by the energy intake only were observed in the male sex, where men with NW had a greater intake than those who had OW or OB, which is consistent with what is stated in the study conducted in the Dutch population, where they have found an inverse association between fibre intake and BMI only in men [
4]. Moreover, the pattern of fibre intake in the different meals during the day varied depending on the body weight situation only in the whole sample. Specifically, we found that the percentage of fibre that comes from the afternoon snack was higher in individuals with NW than those with OW or OB, while the fibre from dinner was higher in individuals who had OB than those who had OW. The difference found regarding the contribution of fibre from the afternoon snack according to BMI, as previously mentioned, could be related, on the one hand, to the fact that a higher fibre content may favour a reduced appetite which, in turn, can help to take in less food at subsequent meals, in this case during dinner, thus balancing the daily energy intake [
6,
9]. On the other hand, this also could be explained due to an afternoon snack that contains a higher amount of fibre, which could also include healthier foods with a lower content of energy or fat.
An inverse relation between dietary fibre from cereals and fruits and body weight gain has been described in a study performed in male adults (40–75 years old) from the United States [
55]. Although the fibre from grains was the most important fibre food source in the present study, there were no significant differences according to BMI in the whole sample. Conversely, we found that the intake of fibre coming from fruits was higher in men with NW compared to those who had OW or OB in the whole sample. These differences may be explained due to fruits that are rich in soluble fibre, which may help control appetite, or because people who consume fruits and vegetables regularly also tend to have a healthier lifestyle [
9,
49].
We only observed in the men of the group of plausible reporters that fibre from pasta was higher in those with UW than in those with NW or OW. This may be due to subjects who have an excessive body weight try to control their weight by the reduction of carbohydrates of the diet reducing the intake of this type of food.
When the data were analysed according to the presence or absence of abdominal obesity using the WHtR, we found that the intake of fibre (raw, adjusted by energy intake and express per 1000 kcal per day) only in the whole sample was higher in those subjects without abdominal obesity. In this manner, it becomes clear that the fibre intake may help to avoid the appearance of abdominal obesity, which has also been described in a study performed in Chinese adults that observed subjects with a lower WHtR had a higher fibre intake [
56].
On the other hand, the pattern of fibre intake in the different meals during the day varied depending on the presence or absence of abdominal obesity only in the whole sample. The proportion of fibre from lunch was higher in the participants with abdominal obesity compared to their normal counterparts, which could be due to the style of eating in Spain, since in general, lunch is characterized by the presence of an abundant amount of foods like cereals, pulses and vegetables that provide a great amount of fibre, respect to other meals of the day. This type of lunch is largely respected by the general population regardless of individual food habits. However, in relation to the snack and dinner, in Spain is observed that there is a much more marked difference in the composition depending on the food habits of each person. On the other hand, the proportion of fibre from afternoon snacks was higher in individuals without abdominal obesity than in those who had this problem. This finding suggests that a higher intake of fibre in the afternoon could have a beneficial effect in relation to the abdominal accumulation of body fat and not only with respect to the body weight situation described previously. Nevertheless, further studies are needed to clarify this aspect.
Some studies have indicated that the consumption of whole grain foods seems to have benefits regarding weight control and abdominal adiposity, emphasizing that the consumption of whole grain products seems to have not promote weight gain, while refined-grain products are directly associated with the excess of weight and abdominal fat [
7,
57]. In our study, the contribution to the intake of fibre from bread and pasta was higher only in subjects with abdominal obesity of the whole sample. However, the information about the type of bread or pasta consumed by the population was not available in our study. Moreover, various studies have found an inverse association between dietary fibre from fruits and the WC, insulin resistance, and metabolic syndrome [
58,
59,
60]. In line with this, in our study, the fibre from fruits was higher only in men of the whole sample without abdominal obesity than in those with this problem. This difference, as previously noted, could be explained because of the beneficial effect of soluble fibre on the reduction of the appetite or due to a healthier lifestyle [
9,
49]. A similar trend was also observed in relation to the group of sugars and sweets and, in particular, with the subgroup of chocolates. However, because the food groups disaggregated by food items have not been analysed, it was not possible to give an explanation. However, it is assumed that this difference may be due to participants without abdominal obesity selecting and consuming some type of chocolate or similar healthier product with a higher content of fibre, unlike the group who has abdominal obesity.
We only observed in the group of plausible reporters that fibre from ready-to-eat-meals was higher in individuals with abdominal obesity compared to subjects without abdominal obesity, which is according with following an unhealthy diet rich in ready-to-eat-meals, which is common in individuals with obesity.
Likewise, when analysing the excess body weight and abdominal obesity individually, it was confirmed that there was a greater fibre intake in subjects without excess body weight and abdominal obesity compared with those who had one or two of these problems only in the whole sample.
It is noted that the fibre from the afternoon snack seems to play a major role in the body weight situation and abdominal obesity. Even when considering the presence or absence of both problems in the same individual, we also found that those subjects in the whole sample with excess body weight or abdominal obesity had a lower proportion of fibre from the afternoon snack and higher from lunch than their counterparts. This suggests that, probably, the meal of the day in which the fibre is consumed is of relevance to obtaining the benefits of the fibre in relation to excess body weight or abdominal obesity.
In relation to the dietary fibre sources according to the excess body weight and/or abdominal obesity, we found a consistent tendency when the sources were analysed according to the excess body weight and abdominal obesity separately. A higher proportion of fibre from bread and pasta (in men and woman), and less from fruit (only in men), is associated with excess body weight and/or abdominal obesity in comparison with subjects with NW and without abdominal obesity.
As in the whole sample, in the plausible reporters we also observed that fibre from fruits was significantly higher in individuals without excess body weight and/or abdominal obesity compared to subjects with excess body weight and/or abdominal obesity. However, only in the plausible reporters, the fibre from ready-to-eat-meals was higher in those subjects with excess body weight and/or abdominal obesity than those without excess body weight and/or abdominal obesity, which is consistent with the results when the fibre dietary sources were analysed according to the presence or absence of abdominal obesity individually.
A limitation of our study was the inability to analyse the types of fibre (soluble and insoluble) and the food groups disaggregated by food items, since such information was not available. Nonetheless, this did not represent an impediment to achieve the aim of our work that was to study the intake and dietary food sources of fibre and analyse the differences in the fibre intake between people with different body weight situations, and with or without abdominal obesity. In contrast, the main strengths of our study include the methodological design used in the ANIBES study, such as the fact that all anthropometric data were measured and they were not self-reported by the participants, which improves the validity of the study, and the possibility of extrapolating our results to the Spanish population because it was conducted in a representative sample. It is important to highlight that this is the first Spanish study at national level that analyses the data for the whole population and the plausible reporters.
The findings regarding the association between diet and the health outcomes analysed in the present study should be interpreted with caution given the discrepancy observed between both samples. Further studies considering different methods to address misreporting are needed to confirm the association between the fibre intake and the excess body weight and/or abdominal obesity. At the same time, the information derived from our study can be useful in designing nutrition intervention strategies to increase the intake of fibre in our country that it was low both in the whole sample and in the plausible reporters, which in turn could prevent and control some health problems such as excess body weight and abdominal obesity.