Obesity, psychological well-being related measures, and risk of seven non-communicable diseases: evidence from longitudinal studies of UK and US older adults
Authors' conclusion
Obesity and psychological well-being may independently and additively increase the risk of developing NCDs.
Study context
- Population
- Older adults in the English Longitudinal Study of Ageing (ELSA), UK (baseline 2008/2009), and the Health and Retirement Study (HRS), US (baseline 2008/2010); obesity defined by objective BMIELSA n = 8127
- Exposure
- Obesity vs no obesity; psychological well-being related measures as mediators
- Outcome
- Risk of NCDs (hypertension, heart disease, stroke, diabetes, arthritis, cancer, memory-related disease) and cumulative number of NCDs; mediation by psychological well-being related measures
Methodological detailstwo longitudinal cohorts (ELSA, UK; HRS, US), Cox proportional hazard models, Poisson regression, causal mediation analysis
- Two longitudinal cohorts (ELSA, UK; HRS, US)
- Cox proportional hazard models
- Poisson regression
- Causal mediation analysis
Main finding
As reported in the abstract
Mediation of obesity–NCD associations by psychological well-being
- Obesity consistently associated with increased prospective risk of hypertension, heart disease, diabetes, arthritis and cumulative number of NCDs in both ELSA and HRS
- Neither the overall psychological well-being index nor any individual psychological well-being related measure mediated why obesity increased NCD risk in either study
Observational data: associations, not effects.
Further findings
- Worse overall psychological well-being (index) and some individual measures associated with increased prospective risk of heart disease, stroke, arthritis, memory-related disease and cumulative number of NCDs across studies
Original publication
Obesity, psychological well-being related measures, and risk of seven non-communicable diseases: evidence from longitudinal studies of UK and US older adults. Int J Obes (Lond). Published 1 June 2024. doi:10.
Composed by AI from the published abstract and checked against it. How Briefs are made →