Study on the Association Between Dietary Inflammatory Index and Body Mass Index in Postpartum Women: A Cross-Sectional Study

This cross-sectional study aims to explore the association between the Dietary Inflammatory Index (DII) and body mass index (BMI) in women with at least one childbirth experience. This study used data from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey from 2005 to 2018. The analysis included 447 women who had at least one childbirth. The study looked at the relationship between energy-adjusted DII (E-DII), metabolic markers related to fat and sugar metabolism, and BMI. Linear regression models and multinomial logistic regression were used to examine the effect of E-DII on BMI in postpartum women. Linear regression analysis indicated that, after adjusting for age, race, education level, income, and other confounding factors, E-DII (β = 2.016, 95% confidence interval [CI]: 1.600–2.431, P < 0.001) was positively associated with BMI in the pro-inflammatory dietary group. After adjusting for confounding factors using multinomial logistic regression, E-DII was identified as a risk factor for obesity in postpartum women (odds ratio = 1.430, 95% CI: 1.098–1.862, P = 0.008). Further modeling, categorizing E-DII into quartiles, demonstrated a linear increase in obesity risk as E-DII increased ( P for trend = 0.002). The DII is strongly linked to BMI in postpartum women, suggesting that pro-inflammatory eating habits may significantly contribute to obesity in this population. Adjusting dietary patterns may provide a foundation for effective weight management interventions.