Evaluation of risk factors for insulin resistance: a cross sectional study among employees at a private university in Lebanon

BACKGROUND: Worldwide, the prevalence of insulin resistance ranges from 15.5 to 46.5%, among adults. Lebanon reported one of the highest rates reaching 44.6%. The literature suggests an association between dairy product consumption and insulin resistance, however results are inconclusive. To our knowledge, no study examined this association in the Middle Eastern Region. The aim of the study was to investigate the prevalence of insulin resistance among a sample of Lebanese adults, to identify its risk factors depending on gender, and to evaluate the association between insulin resistance and dairy products consumption. METHODS: A cross-sectional study was conducted among employees at Notre Dame University - Louaize. Four questionnaires were administered including a background and International Physical Activity Questionnaire short form questionnaires, food frequency questionnaire and a 24 h recall. Bioelectric Impedance Analysis (BIA) was used to measure percent body fat (PBF). Homeostatic Model Assessment for Insulin Resistance (HOMA-IR) was used to quantify insulin resistance. A person with HOMA-IR ≥ 2.5 was considered as insulin resistant. Statistical analyses were performed using the Statistical Package for Social Sciences version 23 for Windows. P < 0.05 was considered statistically significant. RESULTS: Out of 286 study participants, 38.0% were insulin resistant. Average dairy product intake in the total sample was 2.2 ± 1.0 servings per day. Among males, the odds of having insulin resistance were 3.9 times higher (95%CI 1.4–11.0; p = 0.009) for those having a risky waist circumference compared to those having a healthy waist circumference. Among females, being married (OR: 0.2, 95%CI 0.1–0.5; p = 0.002), PBF (OR: 1.2, 95%CI 1.0–1.3; p = 0.008) and hypertriglyceridemia (OR: 8.7, 95%CI: 2.1–35.9; p = 0.003) were associated with HOMA-IR, after controlling for confounders. Dairy intake was not associated with HOMA-IR neither among males (p = 0.777), nor among females (p = 0.968), after controlling for confounders. CONCLUSION: Dairy consumption was not associated with increased insulin resistance. More research focusing on the relationship between dairy intake and insulin resistance is needed, especially in the Arab and Middle-Eastern region. Future studies should examine the effect of different types of dairy products and the effect of different nutrients in dairy products on insulin resistance.