Dietary diversity and association with non-communicable diseases (NCDs) among adult men (15–54 years): A cross-sectional study using National Family and Health Survey, India

A healthy and diversified diet is essential for preventing several non-communicable diseases (NCDs). Given the increasing evidence of diet-related health burdens and the rising prevalence of NCDs among Indian adults, the present study aims to explore dietary diversity patterns among adult men in India and their association with non-communicable diseases (NCDs). For this purpose, the study used the fourth round of the National Family and Health Survey (NFHS-4) to analyze adult male samples (n = 1,12,122). Dietary Diversity Scores (DDS) were computed by the weighted sum of the number of different food groups consumed by an individual. The prevalence of diabetes, heart disease, and cancer among adult men is considered a non-communicable disease. Bivariate and logistic regression was carried out to examine the association between DDS and NCDs by estimating chi-squared tests (χ(2)-test), odds ratio (OR), and 95% confidence interval (CI). The prevalence of diabetes, heart disease, and cancer among adult men in India is 2.1 percent, 1.2 percent, and 0.3 percent, respectively. Results show a positive association between dietary diversity score and the prevalence of the non-communicable disease. High-level dietary diversity scores increase to two times the likelihood of diabetes (OR 2.15 with p<0.05) among adult men than to better-off counterparts while controlling all the covariates. However, a moderate dietary diversity score significantly decreases the likelihood of heart disease (OR 0.88 with p<0.10) and Cancer (OR 0.71 with p<0.05) for adult men compared to a lower score of dietary diversity. In addition, age, marital status, drinking and smoking habits, occupation, and wealth index are also significantly associated with the odds of non-communicable diseases among adult men.