Obesity and its Association with Food Consumption, Diabetes Mellitus, and Acute Myocardial Infarction in the Elderly

Obesity is associated with lack of access to dental care and physical activity among older adults: a cross-sectional study

OBJECTIVE: This study evaluated the prevalence of obesity and associated factors among older adults. METHODS: This was a household-based cross-sectional study involving 282 individuals aged ≥ 60 years recruited in the city of Veranópolis, Brazil, using random probabilistic sampling. Participants underwent a clinical oral examination and completed a structured questionnaire. Obesity was determined based on body mass index (BMI). Individuals were divided into two groups based on the presence (BMI ≥ 30 kg/m2) or absence of obesity (BMI < 30 kg/m2). Uni- and multivariate analyses were performed using Poisson regression with robust variance. RESULTS: The prevalence of obesity was 34% (n = 96). Each 1-year increase in age resulted in a 3.09% decrease in the likelihood of being classified as having obesity (prevalence ratio [PR] = 0.969; 95% confidence interval [95%CI] 0.949 – 0.989). Older adults that reported walking < 5 or ≥ 5 times per week were 39.65 and 37.20% less likely to be classified as obese. The PRs of obesity in former and non-smokers were 4.40 and 5 times higher, respectively, than in current smokers (p < 0.05). Older adults with no access to dental care were 51.72% (p = 0.013) more likely to present with obesity. CONCLUSIONS: There was a high prevalence of obesity among older adults. Obesity was associated with lower age, smoking status, no access to dental care, and a lack of physical activity.

Body fat percentage assessment by skinfold equation, bioimpedance and densitometry in older adults

Background

Body fat estimation allows measuring changes over time attributed to interventions and treatments in different settings such as hospitals, clinical practice, nursing homes and research. However, only few studies have compared different body fat estimation methods in older adults with inconsistent results. We estimated body fat percentage (%BF) and the level of agreement among dual energy X-ray absorptiometry (DXA), bioelectrical impedance (BIA) and Durnin & Womersley’s skinfold eq. (SF) in older Brazilian adults aged 60 years and older from the Elderly Project Goiânia, Brazil.

Methods

The analytical sample comprised of 132 participants who had DXA data. The level of agreement for the %BF estimated by BIA, SF and DXA i.e. reference method, was examined using Bland and Altman’s and Lin’s plot.

Results

Overall, women had higher body mass index and %BF values measured by all three methods used. BIA and SF equation showed strong concordance to estimate body fat percentage in all participants (CCC = 0.857 and 0.861, respectively) and among women (CCC = 0.788 and 0.726, respectively) when compared to DXA. However, both methods underestimated body fat percentage in women and men with high body fat percentage. A strong level of agreement was observed between DXA and the anthropometric equation developed by Durnin & Womersley in men (CCC = 0.846), while BIA had a moderate concordance (CCC = 0.505) in this group.

Conclusion

The examined methods indicated different body fat estimates. However, the best agreement was observed between DXA and the anthropometric SF equation for men. Future research in older adults should develop new SF equations considering different ethnic groups.

Health conditions associated with overweight in climacteric women

This study aims to investigate the association between health conditions and overweight in climacteric women assisted by primary care professionals. It is a cross-sectional study conducted with 874 women from 40 to 65 years of age, selected by probabilistic sampling between August 2014 and August 2015. In addition to the outcome variable, overweight and obesity, other variables such as sociodemographic, reproductive, clinical, eating and behavioural factors were evaluated. Descriptive analyses of the variables investigated were performed to determine their frequency distributions. Then, bivariate analyses were performed through Poisson regression. For the multivariate analyses, hierarchical Poisson regression was used to identify factors associated with overweight and obesity in the climacteric period. The prevalence of overweight and obesity was 74%. Attending public school (PR: 1.30-95% CI 1.14-1.50), less schooling (PR: 1.11-95% CI 1.01-1.23), gout (PR: 1.18-95% CI 1.16-1.44), kidney disease (PR: 1.18-95% CI 1.05-1.32), metabolic syndrome (MS) (PR: 1.19-95% CI 1.05-1.34) and fat intake (PR: 1.12-95% CI 1.02-1.23) were considered risk factors for overweight. Having the first birth after 18 years of age (PR: 0.89-95% CI 0.82 to 0.97) was shown to be a protective factor for overweight and obesity. The presence of overweight and obesity is associated with sociodemographic, reproductive, clinical and eating habits.

Influence of rs1746048 SNPs on clinical manifestations and incidence of acute myocardial infarction in Guangxi Han population

A relationship of the CXCL12 gene rs1746048 SNPs with AMI has been reported in American, European, Caucasian, and Pakistani populations. However, little is known about this association in the Guangxi Han population. In this study, we detect associations between rs1746048 SNPs and susceptibility, risk factors, clinical characteristics, and gene-environment interactions for AMI. 300 AMI patients and 300 healthy controls of Chinese Han were enrolled. Genotyping of rs1746048 SNPs was performed using polymerase chain reaction and restriction fragment length polymorphism (PCR-RFLP) and then confirmed by direct sequencing. Significant differences in both genotypic and allelic frequencies of rs1746048 SNPs between AMI and the control group were not detected (P > 0.05 for each). The frequency of CC genotypes of rs1746048 SNPs was the highest in the 2 h < DT ≤ 6 h subgroup (P < 0.05). The frequencies of the CT genotype and the T allele were significantly higher in the severe complications subgroup of AMI (P < 0.05). There were interactions between the subjects with rs1746048 SNPs and smoking or alcohol consumption (P < 0.017 for each). Rs1746048 SNPs were not correlated with the risk of AMI in present study. For the first time, we discovered that the CC genotype of the rs1746048 SNPs was significantly correlated with DT of AMI; the frequencies of the CT genotype and the minor T allele were positively correlated with the severe complications of AMI. Also, the interaction between the rs1746048 SNPs and smoking or alcohol appears to increase the risk of AMI exposure.

Association of rs1333040 SNPs with susceptibility, risk factors, and clinical characteristics of acute myocardial infarction patients in a Chinese Han population

This study aimed to examine the association of rs1333040 SNPs and several risk and environmental factors with acute myocardial infarction (AMI). The association of rs1333040 single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) within the cyclin-dependent kinase inhibitor 2B antisense RNA1 (CDKN2B-AS1) gene with AMI has been confirmed in some European populations. However, at the time this study was initiated, no rs1333040 SNPs had been associated with AMI in Chinese individuals. Genotypes of rs1333040 were determined in 334 AMI patients and 334 healthy controls from a Chinese Han population by polymerase chain reaction and restriction fragment length polymorphism (PCR-RFLP), and then confirmed by direct sequencing. The TT genotype of rs1333040 was positively correlated with AMI risk (P < 0.001). The frequency of the C allele of rs1333040 in patients with diagnosis time (DT) > 12 h was lower than that in patients with shorter DT (P < 0.05), with no differences in typical symptoms, serious complications, and infarction location (P > 0.05 for each). There were interactions between the rs1333040 SNP genotype (TT, TC, or CC), and patients who smoked ≥ 20 cigarettes/day (P < 0.017). The rs1333040 TT genotype was positively correlated with the risk of AMI. For the first time, we discovered that the C allele of rs1333040 was significantly correlated with DT ≤ 12 h of AMI. Also, the interaction between the minor C allele of rs1333040 and smoking appears to increase the risk of AMI.