Low Serum Concentrations of Carotenoids and Vitamin E Are Associated with High Adiposity in Mexican-American Children1,2

Mexican-American children have a high prevalence of overweight/obesity. Micronutrient deficiencies may be contributing to the development of greater adiposity in these children. This study investigated the relations between adiposity and serum concentrations of carotenoids, retinol, and vitamin E among Mexican-American children 8–15 y of age included in the 2001–2004 U.S. NHANES. Associations of the outcomes of children’s body mass index (BMI), truncal fat mass (TrFM), and total body fat mass (TBFM) with serum concentrations of α-carotene,cis-β-carotene,trans-β-carotene, retinol, and α-tocopherol were determined by using linear, quantile, and multinomial regression models. BMI was inversely associated with serum concentrations of α-carotene (β = –0.88,P < 0.05),trans-β-carotene (β = –2.21,P < 0.01),cis-β-carotene (β = –2.10,P < 0.01), and α-tocopherol adjusted for total cholesterol ratio (β = –3.66,P < 0.01), respectively. Similar inverse associations were found with TrFM and TBFM. Highercis-β-carotene and α-tocopherol serum concentrations were associated with reduced probability of overweight (OR: 0.57; 95% CI: 0.37, 0.89;P < 0.05; and OR: 0.56; 95% CI: 0.37, 0.86;P < 0.05; respectively) and obesity (OR: 0.39; 95% CI: 0.26, 0.58;P < 0.01; and OR: 0.38; 95% CI: 0.24, 0.60;P < 0.01; respectively). Higher retinol serum concentrations were associated with increased probability of overweight and obesity (OR: 2.01; 95% CI: 1.26, 3.22;P < 0.01; and OR: 2.90; 95% CI: 1.65, 5.09;P < 0.01; respectively). Significant inverse associations were found between serum concentrations of carotenoids and vitamin E and adiposity among Mexican-American children, but serum retinol concentrations were positively associated with adiposity. Future research is needed to understand the causes and consequences of micronutrient status on adiposity and comorbidities.