Association of Cardiometabolic Multimorbidity Pattern with Dietary Factors among Adults in South Korea

Globally, cardiometabolic multimorbidity pattern (CMP) is a complex chronic health status that negatively effects the life expectancy of adults globally, even more than single diseases. We aimed to identify multimorbidity patterns in Korean adults to clarify the associations between dietary factors and CMP. Nationally representative data of 9011 Korean adults aged 19–64 years were obtained from the Korean National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (KNHANES) from the period 2013 to 2015. Multimorbidity patterns for CMP, inflammatory disease, cancer and other disease patterns were identified by exploratory factor analysis. Dietary factors including food and nutrient intake and dietary habits were evaluated. Multivariable-adjusted logistic regression models examined the associations between dietary factors and CMP. More than half of the multimorbidity patterns were CMP (n = 4907, 54.5%); CMP subjects were more likely to be older, male, less educated, lower income, laborers, smokers, and high-risk consumers of alcohol than those of non-CMP subjects. A higher intake of calcium (OR = 0.809, 95% CI = 0.691–0.945), potassium (OR = 0.838, 95% CI = 0.704–0.998), and fruits (OR = 0.841, 95% CI = 0.736–0.960) were inversely associated with the prevalence of CMP, while the consumption of irregular meals (OR = 1.164, 95% CI = 1.034–1.312) and skipping breakfast (OR = 1.279, 95% CI = 1.078–1.518) was positively related to a 16% and 28% higher likelihood of CMP, respectively. CMP accounts for more than half of the multimorbidity patterns in the Korean population, and lower intake of calcium, potassium, fruits, and skipping meals have strong associations with CMP.