J Korean Diet Assoc.  2025 Feb;31(1):1-12. 10.14373/JKDA.2025.31.1.1.

The Relationship between the Dietary Inflammatory Index (DII) and Cataract Prevalence in the Korean Elderly: Using Data from the 2019∼2021 Korea National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey

• Na W
• Lee E
• Sohn C

• KMID: 2565187
• DOI: http://doi.org/10.14373/JKDA.2025.31.1.1

Abstract

Cataract is a common eye disease in the elderly. It is affected by various factors including oxidative stress which cause inflammation and damage to the lens. In this study, we aimed to analyze the relationship between the dietary inflammatory index (DII), which indicates the contribution of various dietary components to inflammation, and cataract. The study was a cross-sectional study using data from the 2019∼2021 Korea National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (KNHANES) and included 3,427 people aged 65 years and older. The DII was derived using a 24-hour recall method. To analyze the association between dietary inflammation and cataracts, we divided the DII into tertiles and performed logistic regression analysis. All analyses were performed using SPSS version 29.0. The results showed that 1,457 (42.5%) patients had cataracts. The DII was 1.56±0.1 in the cataract group and 1.18±0.1 in the non-cataract group (P＜0.001). Logistic regression analysis with adjusted variables to analyze the association of DII with cataracts showed that the odds ratio (OR) of cataract incidence was lower from T1 to T3 (OR, 0.82; 95% CI, 0.68∼0.99, P for trend=0.040). This study shows that a lower DII score is associated with a lower OR of cataract development in the Korean elderly. This suggest that dietary strategies focusing on anti-inflammatory foods are needed to delay and effectively manage cataract development.

Keyword

cataract; inflammation; nutrition assessment; aged; Korea