High Heart Risk for fat bellies

Men with a waist circumference of 110 centimeters and more have a 47 percent probability of diabetes, 90 percent high blood pressure and at least 95 percent unfavorable blood lipid values. Waists of 110 centimeters give 95 percent an indication of a body mass index (BMI) of 30 or more, i.e. obesity that is highly associated with cardiovascular diseases. This is the result of a study by Prof. Dr. Andreas Schuchert (Neumünster) and his team, which was presented at the 80th annual meeting of the German Society for Cardiology in Mannheim.

The researchers had the data from 4.918 men analyzed after an acute coronary syndrome (ACS) or bypass surgery completed a cardiac rehabilitation program. The analyzed risk factors were diabetes, hypertension, excessive blood lipids, smoking and a family history. The results showed that 24 percent of patients have a BMI of more than 30 had. There was a linear relationship between BMI and waist circumference with diabetes and hypertension, but not with smoking and a family history.

The BMI is used for the systematic classification of body weight. The formula for this is kilograms of body weight divided by the square of the height in meters. A person with a body weight of 100 kilograms and a height of 1,80 meters therefore has a BMI of 31 (BMI = 100 / 1,82). Obesity is defined as having a BMI of 30 and above and is commonly associated with coronary artery disease.

Compared to calculating the BMI, measuring the waist circumference is easier and faster and can be easily determined as part of an investigation, according to the study authors. The team of scientists believed that waist measurements could help identify obese patients and provide direct clues to the leading risks of diabetes and high blood pressure.

Source:

DGK Abstract V829, A. Schuchert et al, Waist circumference> 110 cm for the prediction of major cardiac risk factors in obese patients with coronary heart disease.  Clin Res Cardiol 103, 1 Suppl April 2014

Source: Mannheim [press release DGK]