Assessment of Factors Affecting Adulthood Body Mass Index among Japanese Using the Bayesian Network

Rie Horiuchi^{1, 2,} , Yuko Maki³, Miki Tokunaga⁴, Ram B. Singh⁵, Douglas W. Wilson^{6, 7}, Harpal S. Buttar⁸ and Toru Takahashi⁴

¹Department of Food Sciences and Nutrition, School of Food Sciences and Nutrition, Mukogawa Women’s University, Nishinomiya City, Hyogo Prefecture, Japan

²Research Institute for Nutrition Sciences, Mukogawa Women’s University6-46 Ikebiraki-cho, Nishinomiya City, Hyogo Prefecture, 663-8558, Japan

³Department of Life and Culture Studies, Sonoda Women’s University, Amagasaki City, Hyogo Prefecture, Japan

⁴Department of Food and Nutrition, Faculty of Human Sciences, Kanazawagakuin University, Kanazawa City, Japan

⁵Halberg Hospital and Research Institute, Civil Lines, Morada (UP), India

⁶School of Medicine, Pharmacy and Health, Durham University, Stockton Road, Durham, the UK

⁷Centre for Ageing and Dementia Research, Haldane Building, Swansea University, Swansea, the UK

⁸Department of Pathology & Laboratory Medicine, Faculty of Medicine, University of Ottawa, Ottawa, ON, Canada

Cite this paper:
Rie Horiuchi, Yuko Maki, Miki Tokunaga, Ram B. Singh, Douglas W. Wilson, Harpal S. Buttar and Toru Takahashi. Assessment of Factors Affecting Adulthood Body Mass Index among Japanese Using the Bayesian Network. Journal of Food and Nutrition Research. 2022; 10(7):511-517. doi: 10.12691/jfnr-10-7-10

Abstract

The identification of associated factors can help control BMI (body mass index). The current study aimed to assess whether adulthood and childhood factors such as sex, age, oil intake, obesity genes, eating habits, food preferences, number of food bites per mouth, percentage of body fat, height, and weight can affect adulthood BMI. This research included 20 participants from Osaka Women’s Junior College in Japan, and cross-sectional data were used. A questionnaire was designed to assess sex, age, oil intake, eating habits, and food preferences in adulthood and childhood. Then, percentage of body fat, height, and weight were examined. Obesity genotypes such as UCP, AB2, and AB3 were assessed using a genetic testing kit. The causal effect relationship between the measured variables were analyzed via Bayesian network analysis. The factors affecting adulthood BMI were regular mealtimes, percentage of body fat, and age. Regular mealtimes were negatively associated with adulthood BMI (r = −0.57, p = 0.008). Thus, promoting regular mealtimes during childhood and adulthood can help achieve a low BMI in adulthood among the Japanese. Obesity genes (such as UCP1, ADB2, and ADB3), food preferences, and oil intake might not be directly correlated with BMI. Finally, education about regular mealtimes among children and parents could help control weight and enhance intelligence.

Keywords:
body mass index meal regularity mealtimes children parents Bayesian network

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License. To view a copy of this license, visit http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/

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