Scientists from Huazhong University of Science and Technology and Hubei Medical University found that the proportion of people living with “metabolically healthy obesity” in the United States has increased over the past 20 years. Research published JAMA Network Open.
Previous research has shown that a small number of obese people do not have any of the ailments often associated with being overweight, so they do not need to worry about losing weight. This condition is called metabolically healthy obesity.
The scientists analyzed data from NHANES, a survey conducted by the US National Center for Health Statistics. They found that the proportion of people with metabolically healthy obesity nearly doubled from 1999 to 2018, but noted that such people still make up a small percentage of obese people.
The authors defined metabolically healthy obesity as having a body mass index (BMI) of at least 30 kg/m2 without evidence of hypertension, high fasting glucose, or high blood cholesterol.
In total, the study took into account the data of 20 thousand people. More than 7,000 people have been diagnosed with obesity. Over the study period, the prevalence of obesity increased from 28.6% to 40.9%, while the proportion of people with metabolically healthy obesity increased from 3.2% to 6.6%.
The researchers also noted that using BMI, which takes into account a person’s weight and height, is not always an accurate way to assess obesity. Some people may have a high BMI due to greater bone density and/or more muscle. Scientists suggest that doctors are starting to use other methods to diagnose obesity, such as the ratio of waist to hip circumference.