It has been suggested that iron overload, which indicates the accumulation of iron, generates cellular reactive oxygens and causes peroxide damages to the body. Such oxidative stresses, in a broader context, are also caused by lifestyles such as alcohol consumption and smoking. However, there are limited data on the association between these lifestyle factors and internal iron overload. In present study, we evaluated associations between lifestyle factors, such as smoking status, alcohol consumption, and physical activity, and serum markers of iron overload. In a population-based cross-sectional study including 2,347 Korean men and women aged 49–79 years, we assessed serum transferrin saturation (TSAT) levels and defined iron overload as TSAT levels > 50% for men and > 45% for women. After excluding persons with chronic diseases and iron deficiency, multivariate odds ratio (OR) and its 95% confidence interval (CI) were estimated to evaluate associations between lifestyle factors and iron overload in 1,973 participants. In all participants, we examined a significantly positive association between heavy alcohol consumption (> 30 g/day) and iron overload; heavy drinkers showed 1.6-fold higher OR (95% CI, 1.11–2.36) than non-drinkers. Stratified analysis by sex showed that this association was significant only among men. In addition, we observed a potential association between heavy smoking > 10 cigarettes/day and iron overload (p = 0.07). In stratified analysis by sex, we examined a significant association between smoking and iron overload only among women; former or current smokers had 1.9-fold higher OR (95% CI, 1.01–3.63) than never-smoker. Our findings suggest that heavy alcohol consumption and smoking may worsen iron accumulation in the body.
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Impact of intestinal microbes on obesity and health is a new topic recently started to get attention. Comparing to the global concern and research trends, there are few research on the association between intestinal bacteria and life style disease in Korean. One voluntary case (female) was reported to show the change in gut microbiota and weight by diet intervention. She was overweight (BMI 23.2 kg/m2) and has abnormal liver function, and the causes of overweight were frequent drinking and meat consumption at the late evening hours. For 47 days, she was administered an improved diet on breakfast and dinner with reduction of meat consumption frequency by 50%. Alcohol consumption was reduced to once a week. As a result, she lost 3 kilograms of body weight. Her fecal sample was collected before and after the intervention, and gut microbiota change was compared using a high-throughput sequencing technique. After diet correction, the shift of gut microbiota was clearly observed with decreased proportion of Firmicutes (from 75.7% to 47.3% in total microbiota) but increased proportion of Bacteroidetes upto 47.7%. After incorporating the diet intervention, it is meaningful to confirm the changes in dominant gut microbiota and weight loss.
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