Is Abdominal Fat Distribution Associated with Chronotype in Adults Independently of Lifestyle Factors?

• Main Authors: Ramona De Amicis, Letizia Galasso, Alessandro Leone, Laila Vignati, Giulia De Carlo, Andrea Foppiani, Angela Montaruli, Eliana Roveda, Emiliano Cè, Fabio Esposito, Angelo Vanzulli, Alberto Battezzati, Simona Bertoli
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Published: MDPI AG 2020-02-01
• Series: Nutrients
• Subjects: chronotype; circadian typology; chrononutrition; abdominal obesity; visceral fat; abdominal fat distribution; mediterranean diet
• Online Access: https://www.mdpi.com/2072-6643/12/3/592

Both abdominal obesity and its visceral component are independently associated with cardiometabolic diseases. Among the non-modifiable and modifiable determinants, lifestyle plays a central role, while chronotype is an emerging factor. Evening type (E-Type), more active and efficient in the last part of the day, has been associated with a health-impairing style, resulting in a higher risk of obesity and cardiometabolic diseases than morning type (M-Type). However, no study has examined the contribution of chronotype to abdominal fat distribution, even considering adherence to the Mediterranean diet (MD). We conducted a cross-sectional study on 416 adults (69.5% females, 50 ± 13 years). Waist circumference (WC), visceral fat (VAT) using ultrasonography, chronotype through the reduced Morningness-Eveningness Questionnaire (rMEQ), and adherence to MD were studied. Our results showed no differences in WC and VAT between chronotypes. However, adherence to MD resulted significantly lower in the E-Types compared to M-Types. WC decreased with increasing Mediterranean score and rMEQ score, and VAT decreased with increasing rMEQ score, indicating that E-Types have +2 cm of WC and +0.5 cm of VAT compared to M-Types. In conclusion, these results showed that chronotype is independently associated with abdominal obesity and visceral fat, underlining the potential implications of the individual circadian typology on abdominal obesity.