This study investigated the interplay between dietary quality, physical activity (PA), and mortality in patients with metabolic (dysfunction-) associated fatty liver disease (MAFLD). Using data from the Third National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES III), the researchers assessed diet quality with the Healthy Eating Index (HEI) and PA level through self-reported exercise frequency and metabolic equivalent (MET). Cox proportional hazard models revealed inverse correlations between both HEI score and PA level with all-cause mortality. Subgroup analysis showed that higher diet quality reduced all-cause, cardiovascular, and cancer-related mortality in physically inactive MAFLD patients, but not in active individuals. The study concludes that a high-quality diet is crucial for reducing mortality in sedentary MAFLD patients but may be less important for those with active PA levels.

Jiaofeng Huang, Yinlian Wu, Jiaping Zheng, Mingfang Wang, George Boon-Bee Goh, Su Lin