Large waist linked to poor health even when BMI healthy

Submitted by Fiona McPherson on

Data from 11 different cohort studies, involving more than 600,000 people from around the world, has found that:

  • men with waists 43 inches (114 cm) or greater in circumference had a 50% higher mortality risk than men with waists less than 35 inches (89 cm), giving them about a three-year lower life expectancy after age 40.
  • women with a waist circumference of 37 inches (94 cm) or greater had about an 80% higher mortality risk than women with a waist circumference of 27 inches or less (68.5 cm), giving them about a five-year lower life expectancy after age 40.

Risk increased in a linear fashion such that for every 2 inches of greater circumference, mortality risk went up about 7% in men and about 9% in women. The association was observed regardless of BMI.

http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2014-03/mc-lwl031214.php

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