People under 50 face a higher risk of heart attack or stroke if they’ve lived with obesity for 10 years, according to research presented at ENDO 2024, the Endocrine Society’s annual meeting in Boston, Massachusetts.
People with excess weight at any point in time have a greater risk of heart attacks and strokes. However, whether the duration of excess weight exposure matters was still unclear.
Researchers conducted a comprehensive study using data from the Nurses’ Health Study (NHS) and Health Professionals Follow-Up Study (HPFS). They focused on patients with a body-mass index (BMI) greater than 25 kg/m² at least once over a 10-year period (1990-1999) to understand how their weight impacted their risk for heart attack or stroke over the next two decades (2000-2020).
The researchers analysed data from 109,259 women and 27,239 men with an average age of 48.6 years and a BMI of 27.2 kg/m² in 1990. Among them, 6,862 had atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease, 3,587 had type 2 diabetes, and 65,101 had a history of smoking. By 2020, the data revealed 12,048 cardiovascular events.
Study findings show that among women younger than 50 and men younger than 65, having obesity over a 10-year period was associated with a 25-60% increase in the risk of heart attack and stroke, which was more significant than their weight at a single point in time in 1990. However, obesity in women over 50 and men over 65 was not associated with an increased risk for heart attack and stroke.
These findings are crucial for clinicians treating younger individuals with obesity and highlight the importance of early intervention. If obesity is treated promptly, its complications can be prevented.
Source: The Endocrine Society
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