Association among daily fish intake, white blood cell count, and healthy lifestyle behaviors in an apparently healthy Japanese population: implication for the anti-atherosclerotic effect of fish consumption

AbstractHigher fish consumption has been reported to be associated with a lower incidence of coronary artery disease. We hypothesized that a higher frequency of fish intake may be associated with lower peripheral white blood cell (WBC) counts, a marker of chronic inflammation, which is known to be involved in the development of atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease (ASCVD), and a healthy lifestyle. This cross-sectional study was conducted between April 2018 and August 2018 at the Health Planning Center of Nihon University Hospital in a cohort of 4105 apparently healthy subjects. The average frequency of fish intake was 2.3  ± 1.3 days per week. The WBC count decreased significantly as the frequency of fish intake (0–2 days, 3–4 days, or 5–7 days per week) increased (s <  0.0001). Multivariate linear regression analysis identified higher weekly frequency of fish intake as a significant independent determinant of a lower WBC count (β =  – 0.051,p = 0.001). Furthermore, as the weekly frequency of fish intake increased, the proportion of habitual cigarette smokers decreased (p = 0.021), that of subjects engaging in habitual aerobic exercises increased (p <  0.0001), and the weekly alcohol intake frequency increased (p <  0.0001). Moreover, the above-mentioned lifestyle behaviors were also independent determinants of the WBC count. These results suggest that a high frequency of fish intake might be associated with healthier l...
Source: Heart and Vessels - Category: Cardiology Source Type: research