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The Relation of Light-to-Moderate Alcohol Consumption to Glucose Metabolism and Insulin Resistance in Nondiabetic Adults: the Moderating Effects of Depressive Symptom Severity, Adiposity, and Sex.

Publication ,  Journal Article
Suarez, EC; Beckham, JC; Green, KT
Published in: Int J Behav Med
December 2017

PURPOSE: We examined the relation of alcohol consumption to glucose metabolism and insulin resistance (IR) as a function of depressive symptoms, adiposity, and sex. METHOD: Healthy adults (aged 18-65 years) provided fasting blood samples and information on lifestyle factors. Alcohol intake was categorized as never, infrequent (1-3 drinks/month), occasional (1-7 drinks/week), and regular (≥2 drinks/day) drinkers. The Beck Depression Inventory (BDI) was used to assess symptom severity. Primary outcomes were fasting insulin, glucose, and IR assessed by the homeostasis model assessment (HOMA). RESULTS: In univariate analysis, alcohol consumption was negatively associated with HOMA-IR (p = 0.03), insulin (p = 0.007), and body mass index (BMI) (p = 0.04), but not with glucose or BDI. Adjusting for potential confounders including BMI, alcohol consumption was associated with HOMA-IR (p = 0.01) and insulin (p = 0.009) as a function of BDI and sex. For women with minimal depressive symptoms, light-to-moderate alcohol consumption was associated with lower HOMA-IR and insulin. Alcohol consumption was not associated with metabolic markers in women with higher depressive symptoms and in men. In analysis using BMI as a continuous moderator, alcohol consumption was only associated with insulin (p = 0.004). Post-hoc comparisons between BMI groups (<25 vs ≥25 kg/m2) revealed that light-to-moderate alcohol consumption was associated with lower insulin but only in subjects with BMI ≥ 25 kg/m2. CONCLUSIONS: The benefits of light-to-moderate alcohol consumption on fasting insulin and IR are sex dimorphic and appear to be independently moderated by adiposity and depressive symptom severity.

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Published In

Int J Behav Med

DOI

EISSN

1532-7558

Publication Date

December 2017

Volume

24

Issue

6

Start / End Page

927 / 936

Location

England

Related Subject Headings

  • Young Adult
  • Public Health
  • Psychiatric Status Rating Scales
  • Middle Aged
  • Male
  • Life Style
  • Insulin Resistance
  • Insulin
  • Humans
  • Glucose
 

Citation

APA
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ICMJE
MLA
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Suarez, E. C., Beckham, J. C., & Green, K. T. (2017). The Relation of Light-to-Moderate Alcohol Consumption to Glucose Metabolism and Insulin Resistance in Nondiabetic Adults: the Moderating Effects of Depressive Symptom Severity, Adiposity, and Sex. Int J Behav Med, 24(6), 927–936. https://doi.org/10.1007/s12529-017-9652-5
Suarez, Edward C., Jean C. Beckham, and Kimberly T. Green. “The Relation of Light-to-Moderate Alcohol Consumption to Glucose Metabolism and Insulin Resistance in Nondiabetic Adults: the Moderating Effects of Depressive Symptom Severity, Adiposity, and Sex.Int J Behav Med 24, no. 6 (December 2017): 927–36. https://doi.org/10.1007/s12529-017-9652-5.
Journal cover image

Published In

Int J Behav Med

DOI

EISSN

1532-7558

Publication Date

December 2017

Volume

24

Issue

6

Start / End Page

927 / 936

Location

England

Related Subject Headings

  • Young Adult
  • Public Health
  • Psychiatric Status Rating Scales
  • Middle Aged
  • Male
  • Life Style
  • Insulin Resistance
  • Insulin
  • Humans
  • Glucose