Self-reported faster eating is positively associated with accumulation of visceral fat in middle-aged apparently healthy Japanese men

PURPOSE: Faster eating is positively associated with body mass index in apparently healthy Japanese populations. In the present study, we examined the associations between self-reported rate of eating and visceral and subcutaneous fat areas in apparently healthy middle-aged Japanese men. METHODS: We conducted a cross-sectional study of men who participated in health checkups in Japan. We removed participants who were diagnosed with metabolic diseases by the time of their health checkups. A total of 320 subjects aged 30–64 years (mean ± standard deviation, 47.4 ± 8.6 years) were selected. We compared the associations between rate of eating and various clinical parameters including visceral and subcutaneous fat areas, using analysis of covariance (ANCOVA), which was adjusted by age and lifestyle factors such as alcohol intake, energy intake, smoking, and physical activity. Multivariate logistic regression analyses (MLRA) were performed with visceral fat area (cm²) as the dependent variable and independent variables that included self-reported rate of eating. RESULTS: Tukey’s multiple test following ANCOVA showed that self-reported rate of eating was positively associated with visceral fat area (cm²), but not with subcutaneous fat area (cm²). MLRA showed that the odds ratio of rate of eating for visceral fat area in tertile (T) 3 (>100 cm²) compared with T1 (≤70 cm²) was 1.99 (95 % CI 1.40–2.90, P < 0.01), and the association remained after adjustment for the subcutaneous fat area. CONCLUSIONS: The present results show that self-reported faster eating is positively associated with visceral fat accumulation, independently of subcutaneous fat accumulation, in apparently healthy Japanese men.