A dangerous level of abdominal obesity can be hidden in people whose body mass index is normal. Currently, about 20% of adults have hidden obesity, and this factor means the danger of developing diseases such as hypertension and diabetes.
UNN reports this with reference to WHO and JAMA Network Open survey data.
Details
According to new research data, body mass index (BMI) often does not reflect the actual fat distribution in a person. Abdominal obesity, especially visceral fat, can be "hidden," disrupt metabolic processes through inflammatory pathways, and also contribute to insulin resistance, dyslipidemia, and high blood pressure.
More than 20% of adults with a normal BMI range have a level of abdominal obesity - the corresponding conclusion is stated in the study "Cardiometabolic Outcomes Among Adults With Abdominal Obesity and Normal Body Mass Index." The results were published in JAMA Network Open. The researchers explain that they used a cross-sectional method to study the global prevalence of abdominal obesity with normal weight.
The researchers also tried to identify a link with cardiometabolic outcomes. It is important to note that cardiometabolic disorders are one of the leading causes of death and disability worldwide. Statistics show that the number of cases of cardiovascular diseases has increased from 271 million to 523 million over the past 30 years. And the number of disability-adjusted life years has almost doubled.
Data and research results
The World Health Organization's "Stepwise Approach to Surveillance of Noncommunicable Disease Risk Factors" (WHO STEPS) survey in 91 countries between 2000 and 2020 revealed interesting data that formed the basis of the study. Among the respondents were 471,228 participants aged 15 to 69 in Africa, the Americas, the Eastern Mediterranean, Europe, Southeast Asia, and the Western Pacific.
Thus, abdominal obesity was defined as a high waist circumference (≥80 cm in women; ≥94 cm in men). It was determined that a normal BMI combines abdominal obesity with a high waist circumference.
Measurements were carried out using standardized interviews, physical body indicators, and biochemical analyses.
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In the global dataset, abdominal obesity was associated with several behavioral and metabolic factors.
- individuals with a larger waist circumference were more likely to report low fruit and vegetable intake (odds ratio [OR] 1.22) and physical inactivity (OR 1.60);
- those with abdominal obesity but a normal body mass index had a higher probability of hypertension (OR 1.29), diabetes (OR 1.81), high total cholesterol (OR 1.39), and high triglycerides (OR 1.56).
Among the characteristics of the respondents, it is noted that individuals with higher education tended to have a higher probability of abdominal obesity. Primary education (OR 1.53) and secondary or higher education (OR 2.38) increased the risk compared to no formal education. But the African region is the only exception, where secondary and higher education were associated with lower odds (OR 0.64).
Also, in the combined sample, it was found that 21.7% of participants with normal BMI suffered from abdominal obesity. The regional distribution is as follows: from 15.3% in the Western Pacific region to 32.6% in the Eastern Mediterranean region. Lebanon had the highest prevalence at the national level – 58.4%. In contrast, the lowest level, about 6.9%, was observed in Mozambique.
Recall
In Ukraine, 23% of children aged 6-8 years are overweight due to irrational nutrition and a sedentary lifestyle.
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