Body fat distribution and mortality risk

Recent research indicates that it is not just the overall body fat but also how the fat is distributed that determines a person's risk of dying over a given period.Previous studies have used body mass index (BMI: the ratio of height to weight) to gauge the impact of body fat on mortality, so it has been unclear if the distribution of body fat per se has an effect on the risk.To investigate, researchers from Germany analysed BMI, waist circumference and waist-to-hip ratio data from 359,387 subjects from nine countries. During an average follow-up of 10 years, 14,723 of the subjects died.It was found that a BMI of 25 in men and 24 in women carried the lowest risks of death. After accounting for BMI, waist circumference and waist-to-hip ratio showed a J-shaped curve with respect to mortality. In men, those with the highest waist circumference and waist-to-hip ratio conferred a relative mortality risk of 2 and 1.7, respectively, compared with men with the lowest percentage. In women, the corresponding relative risks were 1.8 and 1.5. Nonetheless, BMI was still a significant predictor of death in models that accounted for the influence of waist circumference or waist-to-hip ratio.The above results support the use of waist circumference or waist-to-hip ratio in addition to BMI in the assessment of the risk of death, particularly among persons with a low BMI.

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