Obesity may be responsible for more than 10%. Infection-related deathsA new study has revealed that.
Researchers analyzed medical data from around 550,000 adults in Finland and the UK over 14 years and found that obese patients were 70% more likely to be hospitalized with or die from an infection.
The average age of patients in Finland was 42 years, while the average age of patients in the UK was 57 years. Obesity was defined as body mass index (BMI) of 30 or higher.
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Items with “”class 3 obesityAccording to a study press release, people with a BMI of 40 or higher were three times more likely to be hospitalized as a result of infection, death, or both compared to people with a healthy BMI (18.5 to 24.9).
Based on risk calculations, researchers estimated that obesity was responsible for about 9% of infectious disease-related deaths in 2018, 15% in 2021, and 11% in 2023.
This association was also seen in obese people without diabetes, heart disease, or metabolic syndrome. The amount of physical activity also does not seem to affect the link.
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The study, published in The Lancet, looked at the prevalence of 925 types of bacteria, viruses, parasites and fungi. infectious diseaseinfluenza, new coronavirus infection (COVID-19), pneumonia, gastroenteritis, urinary tract infection, lower respiratory tract infection, etc.
Researchers found that nearly all types of infections are associated with an increased risk of obesity in terms of poor prognosis.
“Obesity is associated with metabolic syndrome, diabetes, cardiovascular disease and many other chronic diseases,” the study’s lead author, Professor Mika Kivimäki from the Department of Brain Sciences at University College London, said in a press release.
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“Here we found strong evidence that obesity is also associated with worsening of infectious diseases. very sick Infectious infections are significantly more common among obese people. ”
The symptoms most strongly associated with obesity were skin and soft tissue infections.
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Professor Kivimäki added: “Our findings suggest that obesity weakens the body’s defenses against infections, leading to more severe disease. People may not get infected more easily, but they clearly have a harder time recovering from infections.”
Based on the findings, the researchers concluded that up to 11% of global infectious disease-related deaths could be prevented by addressing obesity.
People who were originally obese, but then I lost weight The study found that the risk of severe infection was reduced by about 20%.
“As obesity rates are expected to rise globally, so will the number of deaths and hospitalizations due to obesity-related infections,” lead author Dr Sorja Nyberg from the University of Helsinki commented in a press release.
“Policies are urgently needed to reduce the risk of severe infectious diseases and other health problems associated with obesity. help people maintain health Supports weight loss, including access to affordable, healthy food and opportunities for physical activity. ”
He also emphasized the importance of obese people keeping their vaccinations up to date.
The researchers noted that the study had several limitations, primarily that it only showed a strong association between obesity and infection severity, but not a causal relationship.
There is also debate over the reliability of BMI as a definition of obesity.
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This study was limited to adults from Finland and the UK Biobank, so it may not apply to other populations.
This study was funded by Wellcome, Medical Research Council, and Research Council of Finland.
