| Abstract: | INTRODUCTION: Non-alcoholic fatty liver (FL) has a high prevalence and is associated with clinical conditions such as dyslipidemia, arterial hypertension, diabetes, and coronary artery disease. OBJECTIVE: To investigate the association of physical activity (PA) and nutritional factors on the presence of FL, and to analyze the association of the energy intake/energy expenditure (EI/EE) index with FL. METHODS: We studied 786 nondiabetic subjects without a history of hepatic or cardiovascular disease, and alcohol consumption < 20 g/d. Diet and PA were assessed using standardized questionnaires, and visceral abdominal fat (VAF) and liver fat by tomography. The energy intake/energy expenditure (EI/EE) index effect on the presence on FL was analyzed. RESULTS: No macronutrient was associated with FL. After adjusting for age, gender, VAF, and total kilocalories, PA significantly reduced the risk of FL (OR: 0.86; 95% CI: 0.74-0.99; p = 0.03). In logistic regression analysis adjusted for confounding factors, the EI/EE index was associated with the presence of FL (OR: 1.69; 95% CI: 1.02-2.82; p = 0.04). CONCLUSION: These results suggest that independent of macronutrient composition, a high hypercaloric diet with physical inactivity favours the development of fatty liver. |
