The adverse consequences of obesity may be underestimated

The link between obesity and cardiovascular mortality could be substantially underestimated, according to a comprehensive study on the Swedish population, published Wednesday in the British Medical Journal.

Many studies have shown that body mass index (BMI) is associated with higher rates of death from cardiovascular disease, diabetes and some types of cancer. In contrast, low BMI was associated with increased mortality from other reasons, such as respiratory diseases or lung cancer.

But researchers argue that these associations may be biased by other factors such as smoking or socioeconomic factors. They also highlight the fact that a serious illness like lung cancer leads to both weight loss and higher mortality.

A team from the University of Bristol (United Kingdom) and the Karolinska Institute (Sweden) has sought to circumvent these possible biases by comparing the BMI and mortality rates.

According to results of previous studies, researchers have found strong associations between high BMI and mortality due to cardiovascular diseases, diabetes and cancer.

In contrast, they found no association between low BMI and an increased risk of mortality by respiratory diseases and lung cancer.

These results suggest that the apparent negative consequences of low BMI on mortality by respiratory diseases and lung cancer may be overestimated, while the adverse effects of high BMI on cardiovascular mortality could be considerably underestimated, they concluded.

It is considered an adult is overweight if his BMI is above 25.

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