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Last Updated: Oct 29, 2008 - 11:04:25 AM |
THURSDAY AUGUST 14, 2008 (foodconsumer.org) -- News media reported a study delivering a message that could mislead readers to believe that being overweight and obese is not as scary as thought when it comes to cardiovascular disease risk.
The fact is, the study of 5440 adults age 25 and older showed that 23.5 percent of those who had normal body weight were metabolically abnormal compared to 48.7 percent among the overweight and 68.3 percent among the obese.
The study was conducted by Rachel P Wildman Ph.D. from Albert Einstein College of Medicine and colleagues and published in the August 11/25, 2008 issue of the Archives of Internal Medicine.
The study, part of the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey 1999 – 2004, was meant to examine the rates of adiposity-associated cardio-metabolic abnormalities among the obese and those who had normal weight.
The researchers collected self-reported data on age, sex, race/ethnicity, smoking status, physical activity, alcohol intake and use of antihypertensive, lipid lowering and antidiabetic medications. Weight and height were measured to calculate body mass index. By definition, a BMI between 18.5 and 24.9 indicated normal weight, a BMI between 25.0 and 29.9 overweight and a BMI over 30 obese.
Additionally, 6 metabolic components including elevated blood pressure; elevated levels of triglycerides, fasting glucose, and high-sensitivity C-reactive protein; elevated homeostasis model assessment of insulin resistance value; and reduced high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-C) level were measured or assessed.
Based on 6 metabolic abnormalities - elevated blood pressure; elevated triglyceride and glucose levels; insulin resistance; systemic inflammation; and decreased HDL-C level, participants were given a grade of either abnormality - metabolically healthy, 0 or 1 cardiometabolic abnormalities, metabolically abnormal, or equal or higher than 2 cardio-metabolic abnormalities.
The researchers said "The independent correlates of clustering of cardiometabolic abnormalities among normal-weight individuals were older age, lower physical activity levels, and larger waist circumference. The independent correlates of 0 or 1 cardiometabolic abnormalities among overweight and obese individuals were younger age, non-Hispanic black race/ethnicity, higher physical activity levels, and smaller waist circumference."
A health observer affiliated with foodconsumer.org said one limitation is that the study did not consider the time effect. It is possible, he said, that individuals being obese or overweight for 30 years may have different cardiovascular outcomes compared to those who had been obese for merely 5 years.
Overall, the study is in agreement with early epidemiological findings that obese and overweight people are at higher risk of cardiovascular disease compared to those who have normal weight.
© 2004-2008 by foodconsumer.org unless otherwise specified
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