Central Adiposity Indicators, Cardiometabolic Markers and Dietary Quality Among Educational Workers in Southern Ecuador: A Cross-Sectional Study
8 affiliations
- 1School of Nutrition and Dietetics, Health Sciences Department, Universidad Técnica Particular de Loja, Loja 110107, Ecuador
- 2School of Medicine, Health Sciences Department, Universidad Técnica Particular de Loja, Loja 110107, Ecuador
- 3Carrera de Medicina, Universidad Católica de Santiago de Guayaquil, Guayaquil 090615, Ecuador
- 4Department de Bioestadística, Instituto Oncológico SOLCA Guayaquil, Avda. Pedro Menéndez Gilbert, Guayaquil 090505, Ecuador
- 5Escuela de Medicina, Universidad Espíritu Santo, Samborondón 092301, Ecuador
- 6Centro Italiano per la cura e il Benessere del Paziente con Obesità (C.I.B.O), Unità di Endocrinologia, Diabetologia e Andrologia, Dipartimento di Medicina Clinica e Chirurgia, Università degli Studi di Napoli Federico II, 80131 Naples, Italy
- 7Department for the Promotion of Human Sciences and Quality of Life, San Raffaele Roma Open University, Via di Val Cannuta 247, 00166 Rome, Italy
- 8Division of Endocrinology, Department of Medicine, The University of Arizona College of Medicine, Tucson, AZ 85724, USA
Abstract
Background/Objectives: Cardiovascular disease (CV) is the leading cause of death in Ecuador, and educational workers have been described as exposed to occupational stress and sedentary behavior, factors that may increase cardiometabolic risk. This study evaluated the concordance among three central adiposity indicators, waist circumference (WC), waist-to-hip ratio (WHR), and bioelectrical impedance analysis (BIA)-estimated visceral fat level (VFL), and their associations with cardiometabolic markers and dietary quality (DQ) in educational workers in Loja, Ecuador. Methods: Cross-sectional study of 101 workers (73 women, 28 men; mean age 37.7 years). Adiposity was classified using sex-specific cut-offs for WC (≥90/≥80 cm), WHR (≥0.90/≥0.85) (men/women) and a BIA-estimated VFL (>9). Fasting lipid profiles, fasting glucose, and DQ were assessed once, with DQ evaluated using the Diet Quality Questionnaire (DQQ). Statistical analyses included Cohen’s kappa; Spearman correlation, and binary logistic regression. Results: Overweight or obesity was present in 65.3% of participants, and 57.4% had all three central adiposity indicators simultaneously elevated. Indicator concordance was substantial (κ = 0.625–0.747). Altered cardiometabolic markers were common, notably low HDL-c (49.0%) and impaired fasting glucose (IFG, 32.3%). In exploratory sex-stratified analyses, WHR showed the strongest correlations with triglycerides (rs = +0.607) and cumulative altered markers (rs = +0.450). Age ≥ 40 years independently raised odds of IFG (aOR = 5.5; 95% CI: 2.0–15.3) and hypertriglyceridemia (aOR = 3.8; 95% CI: 1.2–11.8). Teaching staff exhibited lower DQ scores than support staff (p = 0.041). DQ scores showed no significant association with metabolic markers. Conclusions: Educational workers in this sample present a heavy burden of central adiposity and metabolic alterations. All three indicators showed substantial concordance; WHR displayed the broadest associations, although the small male subgroup requires larger validation. These associations reflect statistical relationships and agreement in classification, not diagnostic accuracy; no single indicator can be recommended as a standalone screening tool on the basis of these data. Older workers showed a higher burden of cardiometabolic alterations, which may warrant closer attention in future preventive research.
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BibTeX
@article{cardenasmazon2026central,
title = {{Central Adiposity Indicators, Cardiometabolic Markers and Dietary Quality Among Educational Workers in Southern Ecuador: A Cross-Sectional Study}},
author = {Verónica Cárdenas-Mazón and Rosario Suárez and Freddy Lining Aveiga-Ligua and Evelyn Frias-Toral and Martina Galasso and Vanessa Arévalo and Estefany Vivanco and Lezli Malla and Patricia Paredes and Ludovica Verde},
journal = {Nutrients},
year = {2026},
month = oct,
doi = {10.3390/nu18203408},
url = {https://www.mdpi.com/2072-6643/18/20/3408},
note = {CC BY 4.0},
}
RIS
TY - JOUR
TI - Central Adiposity Indicators, Cardiometabolic Markers and Dietary Quality Among Educational Workers in Southern Ecuador: A Cross-Sectional Study
AU - Verónica Cárdenas-Mazón
AU - Rosario Suárez
AU - Freddy Lining Aveiga-Ligua
AU - Evelyn Frias-Toral
AU - Martina Galasso
AU - Vanessa Arévalo
AU - Estefany Vivanco
AU - Lezli Malla
AU - Patricia Paredes
AU - Ludovica Verde
PY - 2026
DA - 2026/10/01
JO - Nutrients
DO - 10.3390/nu18203408
UR - https://www.mdpi.com/2072-6643/18/20/3408
AB - Background/Objectives: Cardiovascular disease (CV) is the leading cause of death in Ecuador, and educational workers have been described as exposed to occupational stress and sedentary behavior, factors that may increase cardiometabolic risk. This study evaluated the concordance among three central adiposity indicators, waist circumference (WC), waist-to-hip ratio (WHR), and bioelectrical impedance analysis (BIA)-estimated visceral fat level (VFL), and their associations with cardiometabolic markers and dietary quality (DQ) in educational workers in Loja, Ecuador. Methods: Cross-sectional study of 101 workers (73 women, 28 men; mean age 37.7 years). Adiposity was classified using sex-specific cut-offs for WC (≥90/≥80 cm), WHR (≥0.90/≥0.85) (men/women) and a BIA-estimated VFL (>9). Fasting lipid profiles, fasting glucose, and DQ were assessed once, with DQ evaluated using the Diet Quality Questionnaire (DQQ). Statistical analyses included Cohen’s kappa; Spearman correlation, and binary logistic regression. Results: Overweight or obesity was present in 65.3% of participants, and 57.4% had all three central adiposity indicators simultaneously elevated. Indicator concordance was substantial (κ = 0.625–0.747). Altered cardiometabolic markers were common, notably low HDL-c (49.0%) and impaired fasting glucose (IFG, 32.3%). In exploratory sex-stratified analyses, WHR showed the strongest correlations with triglycerides (rs = +0.607) and cumulative altered markers (rs = +0.450). Age ≥ 40 years independently raised odds of IFG (aOR = 5.5; 95% CI: 2.0–15.3) and hypertriglyceridemia (aOR = 3.8; 95% CI: 1.2–11.8). Teaching staff exhibited lower DQ scores than support staff (p = 0.041). DQ scores showed no significant association with metabolic markers. Conclusions: Educational workers in this sample present a heavy burden of central adiposity and metabolic alterations. All three indicators showed substantial concordance; WHR displayed the broadest associations, although the small male subgroup requires larger validation. These associations reflect statistical relationships and agreement in classification, not diagnostic accuracy; no single indicator can be recommended as a standalone screening tool on the basis of these data. Older workers showed a higher burden of cardiometabolic alterations, which may warrant closer attention in future preventive research.
SN - 2072-6643
ER -