The mediating role of biological age in the association between dietary index for gut microbiota and sarcopenia

BACKGROUND: Dietary Index of Gut Microbiota (DI-GM) is a newly proposed comprehensive metric for assessing dietary quality in relation to gut microbiota composition. Alterations in muscle structure are closely linked to DNA methylation-based biological age assessments and individual dietary patterns. However, a systematic investigation of the interrelationships among DI-GM, biological age, and sarcopenia remains lacking. We hypothesize that consuming foods beneficial to the gut microbiota may help mitigate the risk of sarcopenia by slowing the aging process. METHODS: This study analyzed data from NHANES 2007-2018. DI-GM was calculated using two 24-hour dietary recall datasets. Sarcopenia was assessed via dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry (DXA). The association between DI-GM and sarcopenia was evaluated using multivariate logistic regression, subgroup analysis, and restricted cubic splines. This study also investigated the potential mediating effects of three biological age indicators: the Klemera-Doubal Method (KDM), PhenoAge, and Homeostatic Dysregulation (HD). RESULTS: An increase in DI-GM score was significantly associated with a reduced risk of sarcopenia (OR: 0.87, 95% CI: 0.82-0.94).The risk of sarcopenia was significantly lower in the highest quartile group (Q3) (OR: 0.25, 95% CI: 0.11-0.58). The three biological age-related indicators (KDM, PA, and HD) partially mediated the association between DI-GM and sarcopenia, with PhenoAge showing the highest mediation proportion at 30.6%. CONCLUSION: A higher DI-GM score was significantly associated with a reduced risk of sarcopenia. PhenoAge, HD, and KDM demonstrated significant mediating effects, with PhenoAge showing the highest mediation proportion.