The impact of new obesity definitions on prevalence and health outcomes
Authors' conclusion
New obesity criteria significantly increased diagnosed prevalence, especially among Asians. Notably, overweight by EASO or Lancet standards does not uniformly raise health risks.
Study context
- Population
- UK Biobank participants; median age 58 [50, 63] years, 54.4% femaleUK Biobank
- Participants
- 498,353 participants
- Exposure
- Obesity subgroups under European Association for the Study of Obesity (EASO), Lancet and BMI-based WHO definitions
- Outcome
- Obesity prevalence under different definitions; associations of obesity subtypes with incident T2D, cardiovascular events, end-stage renal disease (ESRD) and all-cause mortality
Methodological detailsadjusted Cox proportional hazards models, stratified analyses by sex and ethnicity
- Adjusted Cox proportional hazards models
- Stratified analyses by sex and ethnicity
Main finding
As reported in the abstract
Obesity prevalence
| Outcome | EASO | Lancet |
|---|---|---|
| Obesity prevalence | 29.6% | 63.4% |
| Increase over WHO definition | 4.8% | 38.6% |
Observational data: associations, not effects.
Further findings
Clinical obesity (Lancet criteria) and severe outcomes
| HR (95% CI) | ||
|---|---|---|
| Lancet clinical obesityT2D | 12.33 (11.74–12.96) | |
| Lancet clinical obesityCardiovascular events | 4.02 (3.89–4.16) | |
| Lancet clinical obesityESRD | 7.13 (6.11–8.33) | |
| Lancet clinical obesityAll-cause mortality | 3.07 (2.99–3.15) | |
| 0.050.21520Hazard ratio (log scale) |
- Highest risk among all obesity subtypes, exceeding risks of EASO- and WHO-defined obesity
Overweight by EASO or Lancet criteria
- Not consistently a risk factor; in some contexts appeared protective
Obesity-related dysfunctions
- Hypertension, metabolic disorders and musculoskeletal conditions most prevalent; varied by sex and ethnicity, particularly elevated among Asian populations
Original publication
The impact of new obesity definitions on prevalence and health outcomes. Diabetes Res Clin Pract. Published 25 August 2026. doi:10.
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