Exploring population and sex‐specific disease trajectories for multimorbidities among individuals with overweight or obesity: A retrospective cohort study in UK biobank
Authors' conclusion
Obesity can significantly contribute to a higher risk of multimorbidities at younger ages and with a more complex disease development trajectory than both normal weight and overweight populations. Early interventions for cardiometabolic diseases in individuals with overweight or obesity and depression in women with obesity are essential for multimorbidity management.
Study context
- Population
- UK Biobank participants, followed for diagnoses of 49 non-communicable diseases (NCDs)
- Participants
- 392,541 participants
- Exposure
- Overweight and obesity vs normal weight
- Normal weightn = 131,075reference
- Overweightn = 169,075
- Obesityn = 92,391
- Outcome
- Risk of diagnosis of NCDs and multimorbidity disease trajectories
- Follow-up
- Median 12.74 years
Methodological detailsUK Biobank, disease trajectory analysis, Cox proportional hazards models
- UK Biobank
- Disease trajectory analysis
- Cox proportional hazards models
Main finding
As reported in the abstract
- NCDs with higher risk of diagnosis vs normal weight, Overweight
- 17
- NCDs with higher risk of diagnosis vs normal weight, Obesity
- 27
- Disease trajectories identified, Overweight
- 35
- Disease trajectories identified, Obesity
- 103
- Trajectory network complexity, obesity vs overweight
- 1.93 times more complex
Observational data: associations, not effects.
Further findings
Order of diseases within trajectories
- Cardiometabolic diseases (hypertension, coronary heart disease (CHD), dyslipidemia) often appeared early; HF and chronic kidney disease (CKD) appeared later
Trajectories in women with obesity
- Depression preceded most other multimorbidities and progressed to anxiety, painful conditions and CKD
Original publication
Exploring population and sex‐specific disease trajectories for multimorbidities among individuals with overweight or obesity: A retrospective cohort study in UK biobank. Diabetes Obes Metab. Published 4 July 2025. doi:10.
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