Morbidity and mortality risk from abdominal overweight and obesity based on the AusDiab study

The aim of the study was to provide an estimate for the morbidity and mortality resulting from overweight and obesity based on data from 6072 men and women participating in a prospective, national, population-based study: the Australian Diabetes, Obesity and Lifestyle (AusDiab) study. Incident health outcomes at 5 years, including type 2 diabetes, hypertension, dyslipidaemia, metabolic syndrome as well as cardiovascular diseases, and mortality at 8 years were assessed. Abdominal obesity was associated with odds ratios ranging from 2 to 5 for incident type 2 diabetes, dyslipidaemia, hypertension, and the metabolic syndrome. Furthermore, the risk of myocardial infarction among obese participants was increased in men but not in women. In contrast, no associations were noted between all-cause mortality and increasing quintiles of abdominal obesity. According to these data, abdominal obesity confers a significantly enhanced risk for type 2 diabetes, metabolic syndrome, and cardiovascular disease.

Abstract

Keywords:
Abdominal obesity – Cardiovascular disease – Dyslipidaemia – Hypertension – Metabolic syndrome – Myocardial infarction – Obesity – Overweight – Type 2 diabetes – Waist circumference